KRONENWETTER – The Village of Kronenwetter Fire Department will celebrate its newest acquisition with a traditional push-in ceremony on May 1. The community is invited.

Ladder Truck 1 joined the Kronenwetter fleet in January, the department said. The $1.3 million purchase was approved by the Village Board in 2022 using $400,000 in American Relief Plan Act funds and $200,000 from an equipment fund. The remaining $700,000 is being financed.

The celebration event will take place from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at the Kronenwetter Fire Department at 1582 Kronenwetter Drive. There will be raffles, food for purchase, firefighter demonstrations, and a kiddie fire and rescue obstacle course, along with the official ceremony and push-in of Ladder Truck 1 at 7 p.m. The community can help push the truck into its new space.

The Pierce Manufacturing 110’ Ascendant Aerial Platform provides a 110′ vertical reach, 90′ horizontal reach and a 500-gallon water tank.

The KFD crew spent the last three months training on the machine.

“We are excited to show off Kronenwetter’s first ladder truck,” Fire Chief Theresa O’Brien said today in a news release. “We want the community to see what it will be able to do for the village. 

“An aerial isn’t just about being able to get to the higher structures. In today’s environment with the lack of staffing, having an aerial can be beneficial because we can fight the fire from above the structure, as in the case of a house fire where we may not have enough personnel to fight it from the ground. I anticipate this truck to become one of the more valuable tools we have in fighting fires and saving lives.”

The push-in is a tradition that dates back to the late 1800s when fire equipment was pulled by horses. The firefighters would detach the equipment from the horses and push it into the station’s bay.

As equipment became motorized, the need to push in was lost, but a tradition was born. In honor of the early fire crews, many departments hold a push-in ceremony when receiving a new apparatus.

For more information, visit the event page at PUSH-IN CEREMONY | Facebook.