New Pumper at Mt. Olivet
Published 11:13 am Wednesday, February 22, 2023
The Panola County Board of Supervisors and the Mt. Olivet Fire Department earlier this month took delivery of a new pumper truck for the volunteer department that covers much of the southeastern portion of the county. The $300,000 truck was a shared expense between the state and the county with some help from the volunteers. Pictured with the new truck are (from left) Supervisor Earl Burdette, Supervisor Cole Flint, Supervisor John Thomas, Plum Point Fire Dept. Chief Tony Ragon, Supervisor Chad Weaver, Mt. Olivet Fire Dept. Chief Gary Hartman, Emergency Operations Director Daniel Cole, and Supervisor James Birge. Later, the volunteers held a “Pushing In” ceremony where the volunteers pushed the truck into its bay, in a tradition that dates back to the days of horse-drawn fire wagons that required volunteers to push the equipment into a bay each time it was used.