Madison donates fire engine to RCC
Aug 28, 2025The Madison Board of Aldermen on Aug. 14 voted to donate a fire engine to Rockingham Community College for use at the Fire Academy.
When the town recently bought a new fire engine, its 2001 KME pumper fire engine became surplus.
Anthony Crowder, RCC’s new Fire and Rescue Services program coordinator, approached Madison about either donating the old engine or selling it at low cost to the college.
The Fire Academy does have a fire engine, but it is outdated, and its service and repair are costly.
“The apparatus is housed at [RCC’s Fire Training Center] and is used to train current and new firefighters in our county and surrounding areas,” he said. “It is used for the Fire Academy, driver/operator certification courses, and other training that is conducted at the training center or designated sites.”
A resolution signed by Madison Mayor William Phillips states, “The Town of Madison and Rockingham Community College believe that the 2001 KME fire truck will be instrumental in training new firefighters and perfecting the skills of existing firefighters as we strive to protect public health and promote fire safety.”
Crowder agreed.
“It’s tough to teach firemen how to be a fireman in a classroom,” he said. “With our Fire Academy, once they get to a certain point, we can put them on this fire engine and do dispatch and responding. They’re making decisions. We have an instant command and have two people ride in the back and pulling hoses and going on rescue searches, so it’s just like the real thing. They’re putting their hands on stuff and responding to calls. They come off the truck ready to go to work.”
RCC President Dr. Sylvia Cox is thankful for the donation.
“This is a great partnership, and there’s going to be a lot of opportunities for the whole county to benefit from this,” she said.
Cox said in RCC’s recent budget request to the Rockingham County Board of Commissioners, the college asked to use some of its quarter-cent sales tax revenue to erect a building at RCC’s Fire Academy to house fire apparatus for weather protection.
Chief Ritchey said the fire engine is in good shape.
“It has a few dings and scratches, but it was a work truck. We bought it brand new, and it’s only turned 15,000 miles,” he said. “I took it to the mountains after the hurricane and didn’t have a bit of trouble out of it.”
Ritchey thanked the Madison Board of Aldermen for making the decision to donate the fire engine to RCC. He said the fire department added extra gear to the truck and donated 10 sets of turnout gear.
~By Gerri Hunt, RCC Director of Public Information
