BOYNTON BEACH, Fla. — The Boynton Beach Fire Rescue held a pull-in ceremony Saturday for a new custom-built apparatus.
The 75-foot truck features a 470-gallon tank, 750 feet of pre-connected attach hose, a shorter wheelbase to maneuver through smaller communities, a fire pump able to pump 1,500 gallons per minute and an on-board 30-gallon foam tank.
“Not only can we put the best equipment out there for the men and women serving the community, but now have an apparatus that is going to be out and serving the community for at least 12 years," Boynton Beach Fire Rescue Chief Hugh Bruder said.
Besides being a certified Advanced Life Support Truck with the latest technology, the apparatus features a tribute to former Boynton Beach Fire Rescue Lieutenant Alvis Fernandez who died in 2019.
Bruder, who joined Boynton Beach Fire Rescue shortly after the loss of Fernandez, said this truck means more than just having the newest bells and whistles.
"This memory of Lieutenant Fernandez helps all of us to remember that we need to put our first responders first and foremost, and we need to make sure not only do they have the best equipment, not only do they have the best working conditions, but because this is such a hard life and because firefighters and police officers see so much death and destruction, over a life of service it takes it toll," Bruder said.
Pull-in ceremonies date back to the 1800s when firefighters used horse-drawn equipment for service calls. When they returned to the station, firefighters would detach the horses and push the equipment into the bay.
Now, when taking delivery of a new apparatus, many fire departments hold a push-in ceremony to honor those early crews.
“It’s all about what can we do to take from the old and give to the new and make them as safe as possible," Bruder said. "And that’s how those traditions are steeped for hundreds of years in the fire service.”
