Photos: Push-In Ceremony for Arizona's First Electric Fire Pumper

Photos: Push-In Ceremony for Arizona's First Electric Fire Pumper

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The Gilbert, Arizona, Fire and Rescue Department is going green. The department celebrated the delivery of its Pierce Manufacturing Volterra electric pumper with a push-in ceremony on Oct. 27, after securing a contract for it a year ago.

This represents Pierce Manufacturing's third Volterra electric pumper placement. The city of Madison, Wisconsin, has been running a pre-production model of the Volterra for over two years, with Pierce Manufacturing using department feedback to improve the production model. The department also ordered a production model as soon as it became available.

Portland Fire and Rescue in Oregon has also been testing a pre-production model of the Pierce Volterra electric pumper.

Since each location has different climates, Pierce can collect vehicle performance data for the truck in various environmental conditions, Government Fleet reported in Oct. 2022.

The electric-powered engine is meant to support firefighter health and welfare with the reduction of diesel exhaust exposure and a quieter operation. 

A push-in ceremony is a fire service tradition that dates back to the 1800s. Historically, horse-drawn fire engines were not easily backed into fire stations with horses alone. After a call, firefighters would have to disconnect the fire equipment from the horses and push the fire apparatus back into the bays.

To pay homage to the history of the fire service, when a new fire engine is purchased, fire departments will often ceremonially push the new truck into the bay and mark the official start of the engine’s service to the community.

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