Approximately a month after officials from the City of Hattiesburg and Hattiesburg Fire Department launched a community contest to name the department’s newest platform ladder truck, that vehicle and its name have been made public.
The truck, named “Purple Rain” and painted with the purple and yellow colors of the Hattiesburg Public School District, was unveiled during a September 7 ceremony at Fire Station No. 1 on North Main Street in downtown Hattiesburg. The engine features the words “Hattiesburg Fire Rescue” on the ladder, along with the “Purple Rain” name and the Tigers logo on the cab.
“One critical focus for the City of Hattiesburg administration has been to create opportunities to forge and solidify a civic identity as one Hattiesburg, firmly supporting our public school district,” Mayor Toby Barker said. “We believe our community will only go as far as our public schools will take us, and each new school year opens up new possibilities of cultivating the rising generation of Hattiesburgers who feel connected to their town and their school, and want to see them prosper.
“We want our city to have the strongest possible relationship with our school, with the most collaborations and the most partnerships of anywhere in the Gulf South. We want our citizens, neighborhoods and businesses to consistently champion the institutions that are raising up that next generation of Hattiesburgers.”
The new truck will be stationed at Fire Station No. 1, which serves the school district’s office, Hattiesburg High School and Hawkins Elementary School, among other nearby areas. The truck was purchased from Pierce Manufacturing for approximately $1.3 million, which was budgeted as part of the city’s capital expenditure budget for Fiscal Year 2022. Those funds come from the American Rescue Plan Act, the $1.9 trillion economic stimulus bill designed to aid recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic that hit the United States in March 2020.
“This was paid for in cash; this was not financed, and we’re very proud of that,” Barker said. “This truck was ordered, and then of course, all the COVID-related supply chain problems occurred, and we ended up waiting two years to get this apparatus built, painted and delivered.”
The contest to name the truck was initiated in August and was similar to the previous community engagements that resulted in names for Big Red, which serves as Engine 4 at Fire Station No. 4, and the Screaming Eagle, which serves as Engine 6 at Fire Station No. 6.
As a result of the contest, city officials received more than 160 suggestions from community members of all ages – from students to senior citizens – including names such as Tiger 1, Roaring Tiger and Eye of the Tiger. The ballot was narrowed to six and then voted on by a panel of fire department leadership, school district leadership and firefighters from Station 1.
The winning name was submitted by 14 residents of all ages: Nick Brown, Jr (a student at Thames Elementary); LaToya Griffin (a Hattiesburg Parks & Rec employee); Lisa Lott; Caila Bowie (a parent of students at Thames Elementary); Christian Tisdale (9th grader at Hattiesburg High); Mike Peterson (the voice of the Hattiesburg High Tigers); Keiara Holloway, Elysia Hollingsworth, Cy’Lan Anderson (8th grader at N.R. Burger); Gabriel Eaton, Cathy Clark (a teacher at Lillie Burney); Michael Ginn; Jaleigha Porter (a 2nd grader at Grace Christian Elementary); and Julie Arender (an assistant principal at Hattiesburg High).
“We saw this as another opportunity to promote Hattiesburg High and the entire school district, so we decided on a purple truck with the Tiger logo,” Barker said. “After Big Red at Station 4 and Screaming Eagle at Station 6, we wanted to engage the public by asking them to suggest names for this new truck.
“This allows us to educate the public on the type of equipment that the Hattiesburg Fire Department uses every day to keep our residents and businesses safe. For this new ladder (truck), the public did not disappoint.”
Fire Chief Sherrocko Stewart said engines such as Purple Rain are safer and more comfortable to operate during fire operations than some other models of truck.
“Although this truck took two years to order, design and build, we are proud to be the home to the city’s first platform ladder apparatus while also sharing in another way to engage our community,” he said. “We provide fire protection to the entire city, including all of our Hattiesburg public schools.
“It’s only fitting that we have a truck in our fleet that is designed and named in its honor.”
