Halesite FD's Maxim Homecoming
Thursday, June 25, 2015
The Halesite Fire District has re-acquired it's 1966 Maxim Light Truck, the original "226", from a collector in Wisconsin. Purchased in 1966 as a Heavy Rescue apparatus, it would operate scene lighting and transport Heavy Rescue tools to alarms. During it's nearly three decades of service, 226 responded to hundreds of fire alarms, including many mutual aid alarms across Huntington Township.
As with most other rigs of its era, 226's crew compartments were not enclosed. Members responding on the truck were exposed to the weather, tree branches, and any other obstructions that the truck might encounter. Members learned quickly to give the truck the respect it so rightfully deserved as the "Little Engine That Could".
In 1993, the District replaced the Maxim with a 1991 Mack Heavy Rescue truck which had the storage space and crew safety features required by that time. That truck was recently sold and replaced by a modern Heavy Rescue Truck by Rescuce One - still named 226.
Members who drove and responded on the old Maxim 226 have many fond memories and were grateful to have it returned; they look forward to having this apparatus join Halesite's 1924 Ahrens Fox as another living artifact of our proud history.
Tom Hincz, a private collector of antique cars from Wisconsin, acquired the apparatus after the Maxim performed it's duty in Ohio on Interstate I-80 as a lighting and heavy rescue tool apparatus. He made some minor improvements, but luckily, 226 still maintained it's markings as 226, and also boasted "Halesite FD" on it's nose and passenger and driver side doors. He contacted the Department about two weeks ago to offer us the truck; he was acquiring a new antique vehicle and had to make room. Upon it's return to Halesite, members who were re-living their memories with the truck found that the radios were still on the same frequency that the Halesite Fire Department continues to use to this day.
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