A ceremony yesterday in Des Moines featured a set of keys being handed over, but this was no teen driver getting his wheels. The city’s fire department gave a fire truck to Bouton volunteer firefighters. Des Moines Fire Department maintenance director Dave Harmon says 20 years is considered “old,” and this truck’s a 1959 model. The chief mechanic’s not entirely sad to see it go. He says it would be very difficult to get parts if it breaks down, and for the city of Des Moines, it must be in good shape. But for a volunteer department, Harmon says the old truck’s an improvement over the tanker they’ve been taking to fires. The Bouton fire department’s old tanker has caught fire under the dashboard a couple times, and Harmon says Bouton Fire Chief Karl Harris stops in every now and then to see if the Des Moines Fire Department has any old equipment they don’t use any more. Harmon says it’s typical for fire departments to help each other out and pass on equipment that would help others. He’s sure if Des Moines had a big fire and needed help, the Bouton department would be “right there with the truck to help us out.”
