A fire truck donated by the city of Mesa to the East Valley Institute of Technology will increase the ability of EVIT’s Fire Science program to create a more realistic environment in which to train future firefighters and emergency services personnel.

Mayor John Giles and the Mesa Fire Department presented the 2001 Pierce Quantum unit to EVIT on Wednesday. The unit ran frontline for the City of Mesa from July 2001 to August 2010 and served as a reserve unit from 2010 through 2021. The engine was $386,000 when it was purchased by the city.

“EVIT is a tremendous educational partner to the City of Mesa, and we could not be more thrilled to support their fire science program through the donation of a retired pumper truck,” Mayor Giles said. “I’m inspired by these future firefighters, and grateful for EVIT’s commitment to offering this training and creating pathways to public service for Mesa residents.”

The truck donated Wednesday becomes the third fire engine used in EVIT’s Fire Science program.

Instructor Barry Clark said EVIT uses its fire trucks just like the fire service in any city. “We teach driving, pumping and operating the fire engines to our students,” he said. “These trucks are used to pull hose lines into structures and operate just normal fire operations. The students get acquainted to actual firefighting operations. These apparatuses allow our students to have hands-on actual training instead of simulated training.”

The fire engine donated Wednesday has features that are more up-to-date than EVIT’s other fire trucks. “As our program continues to grow, this provides greater flexibility in our training scheduling for all our class,” Clark said.

EVIT Superintendent Dr. Chad Wilson thanked Mayor Giles and the City of Mesa for their generous donation.

“The City of Mesa has been a consistent and invaluable supporter of EVIT’s Fire Science program over the years,” he said. “It’s this kind of partnership that has made it possible for EVIT to thrive and provide quality career education and training to so many students for three decades. We look forward to many more years of working together with the City of Mesa to change the lives of EVIT students.”

EVIT provides career training for East Valley high school students and adults in over 40 programs at two central Mesa campuses and a branch campus at Apache Junction High School. EVIT students have a 98% high school graduation rate, two out of three go on to college, and approximately 94% are in jobs related to their training, college or the military within a year of completing their program.

For more information on the EVIT Fire Science program, visit: https://bit.ly/2X7aXY3