All fired up: Firefighters leave lasting legacy Flint Firefighter gives 1927 fire truck to museum

By Roberto Acosta The Flint Journal FLINT, Mich. (AP) -- Firefighter Rico Phillips recently sat behind the wheel of a red 1927 American LaFrance hose truck as it was hoisted onto a large flatbed, making its way to a new home on the state's east side. It's not the last time the 19-year veteran of the Flint Fire Department will see the vehicle, but it's the final time it will roll out of the former Fire Station 2 on Martin Luther King Avenue. "It's in remarkable shape," said Matt Lee, executive director of the Michigan Firehouse Museum in Ypsilanti, of the 22-foot-long, 13,000-pound vehicle donated to Phillips. "The city took good care of it." Phillips said he received the truck in 2005, when a Metamora resident contacted him about making a donation toward the Flint Firefighters Historical Society, a museum that was planned to honor the history of the city's fire department. Those plans dissolved with a downward turn in the economy and a break-in at the building housing the vehicles in late 2011, which led the building's owner to give Phillips until June 1 to find a new home for the antique fire truck, as well as a 45-foot-long 1968 American LaFrance fire truck, 1980s Buick City industrial fire truck and other historical items. Lee said he has more than 60 fire trucks, ranging from an 1834 rig to a 1982 truck out of Scio Township near Ann Arbor, which rotate three times a year at the 10-year-old museum started by Howard and Norma Weaver. "Matt came up and saw it," Phillips said of the antique truck. "He was really excited it came from Flint." As he looked at the three-speed, 150-horsepower vehicle, Lee discussed plans to replace parts on the vehicle -- lantern bracket, bell mount, water pump -- which he said eliminated horse-drawn stations between 1915 and 1925. "I look forward to playing with it," he said. "It's going to have a good home." Phillips said he never took the opportunity to ride the fire truck, as opposed to the 1968 vehicle he purchased from the city in 2003 and drive in parades and other events. "This one is so old, I was scared to drive it," he said. "I didn't want to venture out and crash this old truck." His chance behind the wheel will come during the July 27-28 Great Lakes International Antique Fire Apparatus Association's Annual Antique Fire Engine Muster in Frankenmuth, when Lee plans to unveil it following restoration efforts. "It's bittersweet," said Phillips of the move. "But what's cool about it is (the truck) will get its due chance to be displayed." Published: Thu, Jun 28, 2012