Chuck Seaver, South Lake Tablet
The City of Clermont Fire Department celebrated the in-service status of a brand-new fire engine, Engine 102, with a “Push-Back” ceremony on Monday, June 29th at Clermont Fire Station 2, 2200 Hartwood Marsh Road. The engine is a Pierce make, dual-function engine, delivered recently from the Pierce Manufacturer located in Appleton, Wisconsin.
The engine, which is an addition to the station fleet, is equipped with all-new equipment. The new engine will replace Tower Engine 5 as Tower Engine 5 is being transferred to a temporary Fire Station in the Wellness Way community of Clermont. Plans are underway for a permanent station, Station 5, that will be located on Scoffield Road, near Wellness Way Boulevard. Construction is scheduled to begin soon, with a 9-month completion date scheduled.
Fire service history continues the decades-old tradition of pushing a new engine backwards into the fire station bay for its first time in service, more affectionately recognized as a “Wet-down and Push-Back Ceremony.” The tradition began in the late 1800’s when fire departments used hand-drawn pumpers and horse-drawn equipment. Upon returning to the fire station after a fire call, the horses could not easily back the equipment into the station, so they were disconnected from the fire equipment, and firefighters would push the apparatus back into the bays themselves. Before pushing the apparatus back in the bay, the firefighters would also wash down and prepare the pumpers and the horses before readying both for the next fire call.
Clermont Fire Chief David Ezell announced big plans for the department’s future during the ceremony. Plans that will accommodate the enormous growth that Clermont is currently experiencing include the complete renovation and enlargement of Fire Station 2 on Hartwood Marsh Road. The station was built in 2001 as a model home for the Kings Ridge subdivision when that development was underway. The City of Clermont eventually bought the building and remodeled it to accommodate one fire engine and two firefighters. As growth continued in the south end of Clermont, a second remodel to the station was needed to house an additional fire engine and additional personnel. An open house tour of the station during today’s ceremony revealed cramped quarters and inadequate equipment storage. A station that was intended to house two firefighters now houses eight personnel, at a minimum.
Chief Ezell also announced plans for a sixth fire station soon. Fire Station 6 will be located on Old Highway 50, near County Road 455 in the extreme northeast portion of the city. Personnel and apparatus assignments for the new station are not official yet, but are very much in the active planning stage, according to Chief Ezell.
Visit clermontfl.gov/departments/fire-department for a full listing of fire prevention tips, community events, and services provided.
