
A new member of the Sidney Department of Fire & Emergency Services was officially welcomed Thursday morning when Quint 1 was dedicated.
The new apparatus arrived several months ago, but the dedication ceremony marked its official addition to the department’s equipment.
The Quint serves the dual purpose of an engine and a ladder truck, and provides five functions: pump, water tank, fire hose, aerial device, and ground ladders. Until the Quint was received, Ladder 5 was the only ladder that the Sidney Fire Department had, at 102 feet. The Quint has a 77-foot ladder.
During the dedication ceremony, held outside Station 1 downtown, firefighters followed historical tradition of wetting down the new apparatus, having the dispatch office activate the station’s paging tones announcing the retirement of the old rig and welcoming the Quint aboard, and then pushing the Quint into quarters.
Mayor Mike Barhorst spoke at the ceremony, saying the new equipment will serve the community well. “It certainly gives me a some degree of comfort when I go to sleep at night knowing that we have a second ladder truck in this county,” he said.
Barhorst gave an invocation and blessing. “We ask that you keep those who operate this piece of equipment always safe,” he said. “And we ask that, if your good grace allows, it never attends a fire that results in a fatality.”
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