Fire Department History

Fire Department History

The first record of the fire department dates to 1893 with the purchase of the little “Red Wagon”. The fire chief was Robbie McRobie and he had 11 men on the fire brigade. Unfortunately, there are no records until 1950 with the incorporation of the Village. At that time, a small chemical unit was pushed on a two wheeled cart and a small water unit that was manually pumped provided the fire protection for the Village. This unit called “Manitoba First ” was donated to the Thresher Men’s Museum in Austin.

In 1951 a second hand 1942 Ford chassis was purchased, and Lawrie Bombardier of Winnipeg manufactured the fire pump on the chassis at a total cost of $3,000.00. These 42 chassis were upgraded in 1960 with another second-hand GMC chassis. A water truck was purchased in the 1950’s and served as a second fire truck. This was a 1955 fuel truck purchased from Mel Dowd.

The Village of Glenboro and the Municipality of South Cypress combined to supply fire protection to the village and the municipality. A 1964 International truck chassis was purchased for $3800.00 to serve as the main pumper truck and this unit remained in service until 2010. As the Fire Department grew, new accommodation was needed and when the rink was built in 1948 a fire hall was included. This was used until 1975/76 when the Municipal Shed at 408 Railway was remodeled to house the fire apparatus. This was used as the fire hall until 2010.

The new Glenboro South Cypress Fire Department purchased a new Thibault pumper in 1976 at the cost of $55,000.00. Increased response calls to motor vehicle incidents required specialized equipment. A portable generator & lighting equipment, Hurst jaws of life and air bags were purchased and placed in the first rescue vehicle, a 1959 Dodge ambulance. This was later upgraded to a 1972 Catalina Pontiac ambulance which served as the department’s rescue unit until with the assistance of a government JEPP (Joint Emergency Preparedness Plan) a 1990 GMC 4×4 one ton was purchased. Norbert’s Manufacturing designed and built a 14-foot enclosed body to house the rescue equipment and serve as a command center.

A Sterling International chassis with an enclosed pump panel and 1050 gpm pump built by Sterling was purchased in 1998 for about $200,000 to upgrade the firefighting capabilities of the department. A need for a better water supply at fires necessitated the purchase of a 1985 Mac tanker capable of hauling 2000 gallons to supply a fire scene. Unfortunately, this truck rolled returning from a rural fire. The current 1998 Mac tandem axle tanker was obtained from a United States fire department. This unit hauls 2700 gallons of water and came complete with a drop down 2000-gallon portable tank.

The newest pumper, an International 7900 with an Acres pump and built in foam system was purchased for $ 500,000. It completes the current department’s fleet.