Another installment in the History of the Evanston Fire Department.

Chief Lester Breitzman and the platoon commanders were equipped with Motorola HT-200 portable two-way radios in 1965. This new technology allowed the platoon commander to move freely on the fireground, eliminating the need for a dedicated driver and radio operator. As a result, the firefighters who had previously driven F-2 were reassigned to Squad 21, becoming the fourth member of the crew on each shift. When communicating via handie-talkie, the chief used the call sign “F-1-X,” while the platoon commander was identified as “F-2-X.” Eventually, company officers also received their own radios, with call signs like “Engine 23-X,” “Squad 21-X,” and “Truck 22-X” when operating on portable units.

In 1963, Wayne Anderson became the city manager of Evanston. With Squad 21 back in active service and responding to all calls with four personnel, Bert Johnson’s Police-Fire Cooperative Plan was quietly phased out in 1965. However, the three police station-wagon ambulances remained in service, handling inhalator calls and ambulance runs. Although police officers no longer acted as firefighters regularly, they did receive basic firefighting training during their recruit programs.

During 1964–1966, the EFD added three new station wagons to its fleet. One was a 1964 Plymouth (F-3), assigned to a Fire Prevention Bureau inspector during business hours and stored at Fire Station #5 at night. A 1965 Dodge (F-5) was assigned to the Training Officer at Station #1, and a 1966 Ford (F-1) went to Chief Breitzman at Station #2. All three vehicles were equipped with stretchers and first-aid kits, serving as backup ambulances alongside the police station wagons.

F-2, the 1963 Plymouth station wagon used by the platoon commander, was no longer an ambulance after its driver was transferred to Squad 21 in 1965. However, F-1 always had a driver, and when not in use, F-3 was staffed by Engine 25 personnel, while F-5 was manned by the fourth member of Squad 21 or Truck 21 when needed. Additionally, Squad 21, F-1, and F-3 were equipped with a “fracture board,” a wooden backboard used for transporting injured individuals with potential spinal injuries.

In 1965, the EFD’s oldest rig, Reserve Engine 26 (a 1927 Seagrave Standard 1000 / 50 TCP), was taken out of service and converted into playground equipment by EFD mechanics. The engine and pump were removed, and the chassis was welded shut, covered with sheet metal. It was later installed in Firemen’s Park, a newly developed area near Simpson & Maple. The previous spring, the EFD had used a nearby church building for live burn drills.

In 1964, Chief Breitzman requested that the city purchase a new squad rig and convert the existing 1952 Pirsch squad into a triple-combination pumper. The Pirsch had seen limited front-line service over its twelve years, so it had low mileage and a nearly unused 1000 GPM pump. After conversion, it became Engine 22, featuring a new hose bed, electric winch, auxiliary pump, water tank, and modern quartz lights. It also included a deluge nozzle from a decommissioned high-pressure truck.

When the city considered purchasing a new Pirsch pumper-squad from Skokie for $25,000, City Manager Anderson sought a more cost-effective solution. Instead, the city bought four garbage trucks in 1965 and used one of them as a base for a custom-built squad body. The project cost $13,000, with components purchased separately and assembled by EFD mechanics. The final product, Squad 21, was completed in April 1966 and became the busiest unit in the department, responding to a wide range of calls across the city.

Squad 21 was sometimes called the “garbage truck,” and its crew occasionally referred to as “garbagemen,” but it played a critical role in emergency response. It also operated the DUKW amphibious vehicle when needed. In August 1966, the former Squad 21 was reclassified as Engine 22, replacing an older Seagrave pumper. It featured a full hose bed and a modernized setup, marking a significant upgrade for the department.

The EFD also upgraded its emergency lighting systems around this time, replacing old military-style searchlights with more visible white/red beacon lights. Squad 21 and Engine 22 shared the same generic black-and-gold graphics, which were later modified to have gold lettering on black shields in 1970.

By 1966, both Reserve Engine 28 (a 1937 Seagrave) and Engine 27 failed their annual tests. To keep Engine 27 operational, EFD mechanics swapped the motor from Engine 28 into it. Engine 28 was then dismantled for spare parts and scrapped.

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