By Rachel Sapienza
The New Castle News
NEW CASTLE, Pa. — The New Castle Fire Department never anticipated having to learn to decipher Nepali.
Last month, the city fire department bid final farewell to Engine 2404 as the 1986 truck was taken to be delivered to its next crew, a department in Kathmandu, Nepal.
On behalf of his Pittsburgh-based nonprofit Soarway Foundation and the Fire Station Project, luxury watchmaker Michael Kobold visited the South Margaret Street station to personally pick up the retired truck.
According to Kobold, the Soarway Foundation was originally created in 2015 to reduce risk and better prepare the landlocked Himalayan country in the event of a natural disaster. Soarway’s efforts in Nepal are led by U.S ambassador Scott S. DeLisi.
Kobold’s Fire Station Project is an effort in conjunction with the Soarway Foundation.
Known for his expert watchmaking, Kobold is a Carnegie Mellon University graduate whose timepieces have attracted celebrities like explorer Ralnulph Fiennes, former president Bill Clinton and late Sopranos star James Gandolfini. Kobold Expedition Tools is inspired by Kobold’s love for traveling and mountain climbing, in particular.
When Kobold’s wife was unresponsive during the couple’s second scaling of Mount Everest, two Nepali sherpas came to her rescue, saving her life. Out of gratitude, Kobold taught the sherpas watchmaking and opened a Kobold Watch Company facility in the Kathmandu Valley, hoping the men could continue to provide for their families and leave their dangerous jobs of mountaineering behind.
Only three weeks after Kobold created the Soarway Foundation, Nepal was devastated by two major earthquakes in April and May of 2015. Besides the loss of Kobold’s watchmaking facility, the tremors claimed over 500,000 homes, killing over 8,000 people and injuring 21,000, according to the official United Nations report. Capital city Kathmandu lost all emergency response facilities, and the same report estimated 2.8 million people in need of humanitarian and medical assistance.
Kobold’s prevention plans turned into relief efforts and the Fire Station Project began to provide equipment and donations for the building of a state-of-the-art fire and medical emergency center in the heart of Kathmandu.
Behind the wheel
City fire chief Mark Panella said he’d spoken with Kobold a year prior to the spring earthquakes about potentially donating a firetruck.
“I told him I was on board, but I had no idea what we could even give him at the time,” Panella said.
The city fire department soon learned that within the next year, two of its faithful fire trucks would be replaced with newer, updated engines.
Engine 2404, having served the department for nearly 30 years and 86,000 miles, would soon be the last addition to Kobold’s fleet. The engine was acquired through a FEMA grant and by policy, cannot be used by another U.S. fire department after it is retired.
“It’s a beautiful truck,” Kobold said of the engine. He joked, “I can say I’ve probably now been on more firetrucks than most firemen, and that one drives extremely well.”
The New Castle fire department’s donated engine will complete a roundup of ten trucks making their way overseas through Kobold’s efforts.
Meeting the chief
Prior to trading in the truck, city firefighters had an unexpected visit from the fire chief of the head fire department in Kathmandu. In October, chief Kishor Kumar Bhattarai, with the help of Kobold, was able to check out his new rig in person.
“They serve millions of people and right now, have five trucks from the 1950s,” said city firefighter Marko Relic.
Bhattarai spent the day training with members of the fire department, including Relic and firefighters Craig Wethli and David Huddy.
“You’ve gotta think, this 1986 truck is modern for them, their newest,” Wethli added.
Wethli recalled that the Nepali’s chief’s biggest joy was riding in the truck’s “bucket,” or platform lift. According to the city firemen, chief Bhattarai said that the closest upgrade the Nepali station had was a basic ladder truck, a model consistent with 1950s-era engines.
“He wasn’t used to the controls, he was whopping us all over the place, just having a blast,” Wethli said. “He was like a kid in a candy store.”
Though surprised by the chief’s small stature and broken English, the firefighters said they were most shocked to learn that, according to the Nepali chief, the overseas department combines fire, police and army duties with emergency care, though the country lacks sufficient money and resources.
“It’s really eye-opening, sad,” Relic said. Relic remembered the chief detailing army rangers having to scout the narrow, dirt roads without guard rails, to ensure the vintage firetrucks could reach those in need after the earthquakes’ destruction.
The crew agreed that the overseas chief was thrilled after his day at the Central Fire Station, anxious to see what would be his new truck back home in Kathmandu. He presented the men with the national flag of Nepal, telling the city firefighters that despite the distance, they all were all brothers through their service as firefighters.
“He said some variation of ‘you and me, same brothers, different mother,’” Huddy laughed. “But I think we all knew what he was trying to say.”
After taking photos and saying their goodbyes, Panella made Bhattarari promise to send a photo of him and his crew next to the city’s retired engine when it reaches them. Bhattarai said the photo will be one of the first orders of business.
According to Kobold, the city fire department’s donated engine will be delivered to Nepal this December. As he explained, the winter is the calmest and safest season in the Himalayan country, just after the monsoon season. The Soarway founder said that the journey will secure a Navy escort, and all ten trucks will be tuned up and polished before they depart to serve overseas.
Copyright 2016 New Castle News