Poudre Fire Authority fire engine with a new paint and logo scheme
Courtesy of Poudre Fire Authority
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When I was a kid fire engines were always red, or at least I thought they were.  Poudre Fire Authority has a fire engine with a new paint job and logo and there is some red in it.

Fire Station 2 in City Park off West Mulberry Street in Fort Collins is the home of  the newly painted emergency vehicle.  Citizens may have seen the engine around town the past couple weeks while driver training and details were being worked out however it was not in service yet.

A Little History

When the fire department began ordering mechanized fire apparatus in 1914 the color was most notably red.  Not until 1937 under the direction of Chief Thomas Treadwell were fire apparatus changed to white.  The first one with the new color was a 1937 Diamond T ladder truck.  One known reason for this change is prior to coming to Fort Collins, Chief Treadwell worked for Denver Fire Department which has white fire apparatus. When the city of Fort Collins Fire Department and Poudre Valley Fire Protection District formed Poudre Fire Authority in 1981, apparatus colors remained unchanged.  Soon after a blue stripe was added to enhance visibility of apparatus.

While it looks brand new, Engine 2 reused many components from an older PFA fire engine.  The diesel engine, transmission, fire pump, rear axle and rear compartments now have a new life.  This reduces the overall cost of the vehicle by $150,000-$170,000, it also reduces the amount of material required to construct a new fire engine.

There are no plans to retrofit any existing PFA vehicles.  The intent is for the new scheme only to be placed on vehicles received from this date on.

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