Burned Fire Engine Donated to Intermountain
By Regina Elling

Mark Fisher poses with his fire engine, before the Witch Creek Fire. Photo courtesy of Mark Fisher

It was truly a heart-stopping moment for Fire Chief Cary Coleman.

Nearing the top of a private road off Highway 78, hours after the 2007 Witch Creek fire roared through on Oct. 21, he saw a scene that filled him with dread.

"It was early in the morning, just getting daylight," says Coleman, chief of Intermountain Fire and Rescue in Ramona.

In the eerie silence that follows such a fire, a fire engine, scorched, with no crew in sight, was parked beside a house. The house had been burned to the ground, as was most of the surrounding homes and all the countryside.

"I was scared to death," says Coleman. "When I pulled up to that truck, I was really concerned that I was going to have unaccounted for, hurt or possibly dead firefighters."

Of all the thoughts and images that passed through his mind, at least three were paramount.

"First, whose fire engine is that and where is the crew? Why did they not report to duty? And where in the hell was Willowick?"

Fire Chief Cary Coleman hopes that grant money can be used to refurbish this burned fire engine.Photo by Richard Elling

The last was a huge name painted on the truck's side, but with no state listed.

Fortunately, it only took a couple of minutes for Coleman to solve at least part of the puzzle and put his mind to rest.

"We were immediately able to deduce that the truck had not been involved with fire protection. The license plates told us that there was a private owner."

It was a short time later that Coleman ran into the engine's owner, who was out inspecting the burned property for the first time.

"The engine was mine, but was being kept at my aunt and uncle's home, Maurice and Carol Waters," says Mark Fisher. "My uncle is retired from the Santee fire department."

The two had an arrangement concerning the fire truck.

"He would keep and maintain the truck for me, and would have the use of it in case of a fire. I was able to use it for charity events and parades," he explains.

Fisher originally purchased the fire engine off Ebay for $5,000. The truck caught his attention because it came from his hometown, Willowick, Ohio.

But the Waterses were vacationing in Hawaii at the time of the fire. Fisher, who lives in San Diego, was unable to get to the truck because of the road closures.

"Had we known it was there, we would have commandeered the thing and put it into service," says Coleman.

But the incident caused both men to think. One had a burned fire truck that needed expensive repairs; the other had more men than engines in one of the worst wildfires in San Diego history.

And so the little engine that caused such a stir for the chief, soon caused another one for the staff at Intermountain. Fisher donated the truck to the department.

"We are working on a grant from SEMPRA Energy to refurbish the engine," says Fisher, who is also an employee of the company.

The men estimate it will cost between $30,000 to $40,000 to repair the truck, and an additional $15,000 to add a system enabling the engine to use protective foams and gels.

"We would be able to use it as a reserve engine locally, and also send it out to neighboring areas that need those capabilities," says Coleman.

"It will be great to have the engine somewhere that will actually be able to use it during a fire," says Fisher.

Coleman agrees.

"I can smile every time I see that truck now, which is certainly better than how I felt the first time I saw it," he says.