The ambulances belong to the Fort Dodge Fire Department. Their paint job and lettering stands in stark contrast to the red and white units the department has traditionally operated.

The red and black paint scheme is part of an emerging new look for the department that also includes new uniforms and a new patch. Sophomore graphic design students at Iowa Central Community College played a role in creating the new look.

“We wanted to have our own identity and our own stuff that was unique to us,” Fire Chief Matt Price said. “By having our own identity, that creates buy-in and gives us a sense of pride.”

For the general public, the most obvious change is the appearance of red and black vehicles. The two new ambulances delivered this spring are red and black. A new Chevrolet Tahoe to be used by the department’s shift commanders will be red and black, as will a bucket truck called a tower ladder that will be delivered next year. The tower ladder will be designated Truck 25 in honor of the late Tom Peart, a Fort Dodge firefighter whose badge number was 25.

-Messenger photo by Bill Shea
This new ambulance shows the new look for the Fort Dodge Fire Department. It has a red and black paint job with the new lettering and patch on the side. The ambulance, delivered in the spring, was made by LifeLine on a Ram chassis.

Price said the red and black paint job costs the same as the red and white paint job that was traditional in Fort Dodge.

While new to Fort Dodge, the red and black color scheme has been used by the Chicago Fire Department and departments in the Chicago suburbs for decades. Price said the color scheme is becoming increasingly popular.

“Lots of people in the department wanted to switch over to it,” he said.

He noted that red and black are also the colors of the Fort Dodge Senior High School Dodgers.

The red and black trucks will have a new style of lettering and an image of the new patch on them. That patch and lettering style was created by Iowa Central student Kelvin Baez with help from Jacob Zweibohmer, the coordinator of the college’s graphic design program.

-Messenger photo by Bill Shea
Three generations of Fort Dodge Fire Department patches are shown here. The one on the left is the oldest. It was replaced in 1998 with the one in the middle which is in turn being replaced by the one on the right.

Price said Lt. Tom Ubben found an old postcard showing Fort Dodge fire trucks in front of the Ninth Street side of the Municipal Building. That side of the Municipal Building was the city’s firehouse from 1915 to 1966. The current spacious City Council meeting room was the fire truck garage during those years.

That postcard image was given to the sophomore design students at Iowa Central and a contest was held to see who could make it into the most attractive emblem for the Fire Department. Baez won. Zweibohmer made some touch-ups on the design, which was accepted by the Fire Department.

The current blue uniform that the firefighters, paramedics and emergency medical technicians wear is a copy of the Des Moines Fire Department uniforms, according to Price. He said the words Fort Dodge were placed where the words Des Moines are, but everything else is the same.

The Des Moines style outfits will gradually disappear as Fire Department personnel use the uniform allowance they receive as part of their contract to buy new shirts, sweatshirts and hats that feature the new patch and lettering. A few department members already have caps with the new logo.