Faraday Fire Department gets new pumper tanker

Apr. 20, 2024, South Bancroft, Ont. – On the evening of April 9 at the Faraday Fire Station, the Faraday Fire Department took possession of their new Metalfab 2024 Freightliner pumper tanker and brought back an old tradition of pushing the new fire truck into the fire hall to commemorate the start of its service to the township. The Faraday Fire Department, led by Fire Chief Brian Sears, Mayor Dennis Purcell, Councillor Murray Bowers, Deputy Treasurer Sarah Jenkins, Safetek Profire operations manager and product specialist Greg Rivers, and other members of the community were out that night to partake in the ceremony. Rivers and Purcell comment on the evening’s festivities.

The tradition of pushing a new piece of fire equipment back into the fire hall goes back to the 17^th century, where early hand-drawn fire engines, ladder wagons, hose carts and other apparatus had to be pushed back into the bay. Even when this equipment was horse drawn in the next century, firefighters still found it expedient to disconnect the horses and push the apparatus back into the fire hall. Even with motorized fire engines coming into service in the early 19th century, this tradition continued to be honoured and is done to this day to commemorate a new piece of fire equipment and include the community in the celebration of its entry into service.

Rivers, operations manager and product specialist with Safetek Profire out of Mississauga, where the fire truck was purchased, delivered the truck on April 10 to Faraday Township. It is replacing a 1990 fire truck within the Faraday Fire Department, the latter of which will be retired from service.

Rivers says the new truck was similar to a pumper truck the township has, which is now seven years old, but has a taller body, more storage space and different manufacturing detailing. He says it’s a Metalfab 2024 Freightliner, model number M2106, with a Cummins engine and automatic transmission and it’s manufactured right here in Canada, in Centreville, New Brunswick.

“For us, it’s classified as a pumper truck because it has a full midship pump on it where the whole pump goes midship across the tanker transverse side of it. It has a dump valve on the back and a larger water tank,” he says.

In addition to the pushing in ceremony, the fire department also had a barbecue, a cheque ceremony where Sears handed the cheque for the truck over to Rivers, and a community mingle where people could chat and admire and ask questions about the new fire truck.

Purcell told The Bancroft Times that it was wonderful to see the large contingent of firepersons participating in the tradition of pushing the new Freightliner fire truck into the fire hall.

“Chief Brian Sears should be commended for the long hours preparing the specifications and funding for the new truck. All Faraday residents can be rest assured they own some of the finest fire equipment in North Hastings,” he says. “Citizens should be most proud of our new acquisition from Metalfab Fire Trucks.”