PALESTINE – The Palestine Fire Department inducted a new member to its firefighting family recently — one that will hopefully be with the department for a long time. A new Pierce fire engine rolled into Palestine on Jan. 16. After a short induction ceremony by the on-hand crew, firefighters went to the task of outfitting the engine with the necessary equipment. The engine will be housed at Station 3 behind Palestine High School and will go into full service soon after training and orientation.

The engine is designed to be a workhorse from the frame up. Its diesel engine has up to 450 horsepower. It hauls all-new equipment to an emergency, along with up to five firefighters. Interim Fire Chief Shannon Davis said it is a departure from the engines currently used by the department because the new Engine 3 is meant for fire service.

“All of our other engines are commercial-grade and have the fire equipment placed on it,” Davis said. “Our new engine is designed and built for firefighting.”

The Palestine City Council approved $109,551 in funding to purchase the engine early in 2016, but the work on the new engine came up to two years before the go-ahead. Since its inception, Assistant Chief Kyle Betterton, Battalion Chief Kelly Hughes and Lts. Devin Jackson and Ken Brossett formed a committee to work with Pierce to design an engine that will not only meet the department’s needs, but will serve as a template for future fire engines in Palestine.

The firefighters got the chance to visit the new engine at Pierce’s plant in Appleton, Wisconsin, in December for a final inspection. The engine then went to Denton for final outfitting and Betterton, Brossett and Jackson picked it up and brought it back to Palestine.

When the truck arrived in Palestine, the “B” Crew, who was on duty that day, greeted it and performed a short induction ceremony for the engine. The ceremony, a firefighting tradition, included an old engine spraying water on the new engine. According to Lt. Jackson, the spraying is to signify the old engine has some life left. After a prayer, the firefighters pushed the engine into its new home.

To compliment the new engine, a brand-new set of equipment will fill it. Along with the ladders and hoses, the engine hosts equipment new to the department. To assist in the extrication of victims following a car accident, the department now has a four-point steel jack. The jack, made by Res-Q-Jack, can lift an overturned car and firefighters can get an injured driver or passenger from the car.