NAMPA, Idaho — The Nampa Fire Protection District welcomed a brand new ladder truck to its fleet on Tuesday with a traditional push-in ceremony.
"In the really early days of fire service, the horses wouldn’t back it in, the people would," Nampa Fire Chief Kirk Carpenter said.
Beyond the tradition, the ceremony reflects something bigger for the community: how older fire trucks can keep serving neighbors in smaller rural departments long after they leave a growing city’s fleet.
WATCH: Nampa firefighters push their new ladder truck in
"If those apparatus are still, still serviceable, still have life in them, we will often donate them versus surplus them," Deputy Fire Chief of Operations Chris King said.
King said the district would rather see their old trucks continue protecting neighbors in smaller communities like Sand Hollow than get rid of them.
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"If we can support our neighboring agencies or agencies around the state with a serviceable apparatus, of course, we would, we would like to help our neighbors out," King said.
That does not mean those trucks are removed from service overnight. Nampa Fire says older apparatus often move into reserve status first, helping cover the district when the primary trucks are in the shop.
"Currently, we have three engines and one extra ladder truck that are, that are aged, right? They used to be frontline apparatus. We put them to the backline," King said.
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Fire leaders say their trucks typically stay in service for 10 to 12 years. Even when a new one arrives, getting it ready for local use still takes time.
I caught up with City of Nampa Fleet Services employee Shawn Swainston last month to check it out.
"We have months into this truck right now as far as prepping it because this one did not come with some of the additional wiring we needed," Swainston said.
That longer timeline is part of why Nampa says deciding when a truck can leave the fleet comes down to condition, cost, and whether it can still safely serve another department.
Nampa Fire has done this before, with past donations going to Homedale, Council, and the College of Western Idaho. Leaders say that for smaller departments, that kind of hand-me-down can make a major difference.
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