Lincoln Fire and Rescue welcomes brand new fire truck

The whole neighborhood turned out to welcome Station 7’s new fire truck at Cotner and A Wednesday, following tradition by dousing it with water, then pushing it into the fire house.

"It was really fun," said 6-year-old Emily Bauman, who came with her family to watch. "My favorite part was getting to push it."

It’s a sign of how much the station has meant to the community.

"I had my birthday party here at the fire station," said 15-year-old Elliott Haes. "They gave me a hat, the challenge coin, and a real fire helmet."

The consensus was that the new fire truck was a long time coming.

"The older fleet is challenging," said LFR Division Chief Kendall Warnock. "We just can’t pinpoint when or what is going to break down."

Just last week, truck 5 broke down with no replacement available.

"Many times per month some of our fire apparatus won’t start or it doesn’t make it to the call, it breaks down along the way," said LFR Chief Michael Despain. 

The new truck is replacing one that’s 21 years old. Many trucks are so old it’s hard to find parts to fix them when they break down. LFR says having even one truck out of service is a danger to the community.

"We get into situations where we don’t have a piece of equipment for them to use," said Warnock. "There’s a potential for life or death."

This truck cost $770,000; it was purchased with the help of a federal grant and some leftover funds from last year. The department’s getting another truck in August, and three new engines, which pump water at fires, in September.