The Margate Fire Department has added a new multimillion-dollar fire truck to its fleet, closing out an investment the department has been working toward for years. Firefighters marked the arrival with a traditional “push-in” ceremony, pushing the apparatus into the fire station.
The truck will be one of three in service. It replaces an older vehicle, which will stay on hand as a backup.
The new apparatus includes upgrades aimed at firefighter safety, communication and response times. The cabin is larger, giving crews more room to get dressed for calls while wearing roughly 80 pounds of protective gear. A Bluetooth system lets crew members hear one another while en route, so they can plan their approach before reaching a scene. Hoses have also been moved lower on the truck for quicker access.
Margate Fire Chief Roberto Lorenzo said in a statement that the investment will help residents get dependable emergency service. “When they call 911, they expect a certain standard,” he said. He also stressed that modern equipment helps protect firefighters in dangerous situations.
The push-in tradition dates to the 18th and 19th centuries, when horse-drawn steam engines could not reliably back into fire stations, so firefighters pushed them in by hand.
