In a ceremony that mixed civic pride with a hat tip acknowledging the need to keep Wilton’s citizens and first responders safe, officials dedicated the town’s new fire truck, Tanker No. 4, on Wednesday morning, Oct. 29.
“It’s kind of apropos to dedicate this kind of apparatus on the second anniversary of Hurricane Sandy,” Chief Ronald Kanterman said. “Firefighters here, everywhere in the country were out in the days, weeks and months, trying to make a difference in the lives of the people we serve. This truck will do the same.”
Firefighter Brian Elliot was one of the firefighters on the committee that designed the new tanker, and he spoke at the dedication ceremony as well. From the start, he offered gracious words with the heart of a professional who has pledged to serve the public.
“This apparatus, like all the apparatus Wilton Fire Department has, is ours to use, but it belongs to the residents of the town. They’re the ones that provided it to us and they should know that these are their fire trucks,” he said.
Two years in the planning, the tanker replaces the aging, 20-year-old “old tanker no. 4.” The new rig was custom built to the exact needs and specifications of the department. Elliot explained how the tanker, which has the capacity to carry 2,500 gallons of water, will serve many purposes.
“It provides us with the ability to get our water supply-apparatus to non-hydrant areas, but it’s also a pumper-engine rolled into it. We also looked at the role we provide in mutual aid. Probably more than any other apparatus in the department, Engine 4 will provide mutual aid, usually to our surrounding towns like Ridgefield, Weston, but we can even go state-wide,” he said.
Chief Kanterman referenced “every little boy’s dream, and now some little girls, to ride on a shiny red fire truck,” when he described how important safe equipment is to complement the hard work and training that firefighters need to stay current. “Our fire engines and trucks are tools, they carry personnel and equipment to a scene so we can operate as safely and effectively and efficiently as possible. Today, safety revolves around everything we do, because everyone has to go home after every shift. Fire trucks are part of our safety mix.”
First selectman Bill Brennan helped dedicate the truck by unveiling the plaque on the engine’s side.
“We needed this equipment, and we will continue to support the requests of our first responders. Many of you spent nine days in the EOC during Sandy. All of the equipment we have was used during that storm–we have to be prepared. This is the type of equipment that keeps everybody safe. We need this type of equipment to carry a lot of water to residential homes.” Brennan said.
The truck was anointed with water twice–once when it was blessed with holy water by Father Reggie Norman, from Our Lady of Fatima Church, and once, following firefighter tradition, as Chief Kanterman explained, “[We’re] going to draw water off of old tanker no. 4 [in a bucket], and pass it up and transfer it to new Tanker No. 4, ceremoniously. The idea is to transfer water from the old tanker to the new tanker, to transfer the spirit of the firefighters who rode on that engine over 20 years. It represents the fires and emergencies they went to over the years and it will transfer from old to new, and the two engines will now meet. Ceremoniously, spiritually, we’ll transfer all that from the old to the new.”
