New fire engine marks major step in Hewitt's strategic growth plan (2024)

The Hewitt Fire Department took another step in its strategic plan for growth Saturday, as Chief Jonathan Christian and his crews celebrated a new fire engine with a push-in ceremony.

Christian, along with other members of the department, invited residents of the city to the ceremonial washdown and push-in event, giving taxpayers a chance to see the sparkly $867,000 truck before it starts going out on calls and gets its permanent home in a new fire station.

The Hewitt City Council approved the purchase of the fire engine in November 2022, at the time estimating a 15-month delivery time. It arrived about two weeks ago, or about 21 months after the purchase, but Christian said he is glad to have possession of it.

“This is just a great day to get it actually welcomed into the fleet,” said Christian, who was named chief in July 2022. “We can actually put it in service right now, we just need a couple of more tools that we have ordered.”

Christian said waiting until the start of 2023 to purchase this engine would have added $60,000 to the price tag and five months to the turnaround time. He said it would cost more than $1 million and take three to four years to arrive if the city waited until now.

The new state-of-the-art engine will ultimately be placed in the projected $4 million new station near Old Temple Road and Crestwood Drive, Christian said. The city has not yet broken ground on the station.

Christian said the truck is about 33 feet long and features a PACCAR motor engine with 510 horsepower and more than 1,800 pounds of foot torque. He added it holds 750 gallons of water and sports a 1,500-gallon water pump.

“It’s going to serve our citizens well,” Christian said. “It’s a very strong, well-built, stout truck that’s going to last a really long time.

Hewitt Mayor Steve Fortenberry said the arrival of the new engine signals “a springboard for what’s coming.”

“This is really the beginning,” Fortenberry said. “Our city is growing. … This is not reactive, this is really proactive. And boy, is that a really pretty red fire truck.”

Christian started this strategic plan for growth in late 2022, just a few months after he was named chief. Christian pointed to Hewitt’s projected population growth and noted that the Hewitt Fire Department was going to need more resources to protect citizens.

The plan included this new engine, more staffing for the department and the new fire station. The department has not hired a new firefighter since 2013, but fire call volume in Hewitt has more than tripled since then.

Christian said the addition of a substation would split call response volume between the two stations and decrease the time it takes for the department to reach some places in Hewitt. The new station would also be on the opposite side of the railroad tracks that split much of the city from the current station at 100 Patriot Court.

As of August, the Hewitt Fire Department employs 15 career firefighters, operating out of one fire station 24 hours a day, seven days a week, according to its website. On average, the department responds to over 1,600 calls per year, the website adds.

But Christian said until that new station is built, they will start using the new engine as “first out” as soon as next week. Christian said that will also extend the lifespan on other fire trucks at the current station.

Christian said he hopes the new station will be operational by late spring or early summer 2026. He said it will be worth the wait and that Saturday’s washdown ceremony gives the department a taste of what is coming.

“It really does set up a new era of looking toward that new station and that new identity.”

Washdown ceremony traditions date back to the late 1800s when fire departments used horses to pull fire apparatus to fires. After fighting a fire, crews would wash and ready the horses and the apparatus ahead of their next call.

But they would often struggle backing the equipment into the station bay, so firefighters would disconnect the horses and push the equipment in themselves. The tradition carries on today, as fire departments celebrate the arrival of new equipment with push-in ceremonies.