By Kendall Ledlow 

On Oct. 4, a symphony of sirens blared up and down Main Street from 10 to 10:30 a.m. Though it may have sounded alarming, it was a celebration: Montevallo’s 51st annual Fire Prevention Parade. 

The procession was led by the Montevallo High School marching band. Following were a few police cars and then the main event — the fire rescue vehicles. 

“I see the fire trucks!” yelled children who laughed, smiled, twirled and stomped, barely able to contain their excitement as the wailing of countless sirens drew nearer. They happily waved at and picked up candy thrown from the vehicle apparatuses.  

In addition to the Montevallo Fire Department, vehicles from the Calera, Pelham, Alabaster and other local departments were present as well. Also involved were families, Girl Scouts, small businesses and local and state-level politicians.  

The fun didn’t end with the last vehicle, though. The festivities continued at Orr Park. 

“We really focus on giving back to the community, and this event is always all about the community and partnering with the first responders,” said a representative from Impact Montevallo, “So that’s why we do all the games and fun stuff — because we like to provide opportunities for the community to come together and have a good time.” 

For children, there were yard games, activities and free fire safety related goodies. First Responders were provided free meals to thank them for their hard work, and other attendees could purchase pizza and drinks.  

The Alabama Fire College brought an interactive trailer where kids could learn valuable fire safety lessons. Matt Russell, director of the college, spoke on why the event is so important. 

“…All these fire departments here, they need to have community engagement, because what happens is it builds trust. If we can get the kids involved and show them, then they get the parents involved, and hand out marketing materials,” Russell explains, “all these things have messages about fire extinguishers, smoke alarms, and those things. It helps them learn about what they should do to help prevent fires.” 

Russell added that each vehicle apparatus used in the parade costs anywhere from 500,000 to 1,000,000 dollars. Russell stated, “How many people get to drive a half a million-dollar vehicle, right? That’s pretty cool.” Russell says fire personnel take excellent care of the vehicles because they’re so expensive and are mainly funded with donations, hence why engaging with the community is so important.  

“We’re not special or anything like that. We’re firefighters, but we’re part of the community,” Russell concludes, “That’s part of the value of [the parade,] is being in the community.”