Wy’east fire volunteer Brent Goe, Deputy Chief Dwight Moe and Chief Greg Borton investigate the rear of a fire truck that has been decorated with Christmas lights. Hood River County fire departments have been participating in the annual parade since the 1990s
Hood River County kids Everett Porter, age 2, Juniper Porter, 5, and Waylon Beth, 3, pose with the fire trucks before they parade around Odell and Pine Grove.
Wy’east fire volunteer Brent Goe, Deputy Chief Dwight Moe and Chief Greg Borton investigate the rear of a fire truck that has been decorated with Christmas lights. Hood River County fire departments have been participating in the annual parade since the 1990s
Noah Noteboom photo
Hood River County kids Everett Porter, age 2, Juniper Porter, 5, and Waylon Beth, 3, pose with the fire trucks before they parade around Odell and Pine Grove.
HOOD RIVER — As thousands of Christmas lights cloak fire trucks from the Wy’east Fire Department, residents lined the streets waiting for a glimpse at the decorated fire engines. Wy’east Fire Department Chief Greg Borton said the parade has become so popular with residents many put up with sub-freezing temperatures just for a brief sighting. This year, the engines could be spotted at the downtown Hood River tree lighting on Dec. 6.
A very well-known holiday event in Hood River County, Borton estimated the parade was started in the 1990s by former Pine Grove Fire Chief Bob Norton. In the beginning, trucks stayed close to home venturing no further than Odell. The idea has blossomed into an annual event that draws people from around the state. Wy’east Fire Department Deputy Chief Dwight Moe said in previous years, he knew a family that traveled from Bend, Oregon so their family could see the furnished fire trucks.
Borton credits the volunteers for decorating the trucks and said it wouldn’t be possible without their help.
“It has become a tradition, and all of the departments really get into it. Some of the designs on the trucks are different year after year,” Borton said. “It’s always fun to see what the volunteers come up with.”
He said that volunteers do most, if not all of the design and decorating. It takes approximately three to four hours — sometimes over the course of multiple days — to decorate one truck. In previous years, the Hood River Fire Department built a sleigh that carried Santa and Mrs. Claus, but unfortunately, frigid temperatures and rainy conditions put an end to that float.
Borton said that the departments must plan ahead because engines that are decorated will be out of service for a couple weeks.
“Usually a truck that’s selected would be a third or fourth truck out. So it works out really well,” Borton said.
Every fire department in the county participates and this year the parade took place over the course of four days. “We start on Monday night, and [drive through] the Odell and Pine Grove area. Then on Tuesday night it’s the Parkdale Fire District. Wednesday night it’s Westside and Hood River, and then Thursday night it’s Cascade Locks,” Borton explained. Added in 2019, Cascade Locks is the most recent addition to the parade route.
Many residents plan their week around seeing the trucks and Borton said the community always shows their appreciation by clapping and cheering as the trucks drive by. As the Wy’east Fire Department volunteers prepare to hit the road, Borton gave one last instruction: “Go slow, or else we will hear about it,” he said with a chuckle.
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