Nelson Airport’s new fire truck has a name selected from hundreds of suggestions submitted by members of the public.
The airport’s Name the Truck competition ran from 22 August to 7 September, in which time 597 suggestions were submitted for the $1.4 million Rosenbauer Panther fire truck. After shortlisting the entries down to a top four, the airport enlisted the help of the Tasman Mako and Big Brothers Big Sisters Nelson –Tasman (two organisations the airport sponsors) to help select the winner.
The vote was close between the top four of Tūtei (meaning sentinel, surveillance, keeping watch for emergencies), Firefly, Panata Whakatū (Nelson Panther) and the eventual winner - Flick.
Nelson Airport Communications Manager Beth Catley said several people suggested Flick. The winner of the competition was Wendi Turner, whose entry stood out with a reimagined version of the song that accompanied the original 1948 children’s story Flick the Little Fire Engine.
“Flick is a nostalgic favourite and a few people suggested it, but Wendi’s addition of a new version of the song for Nelson Airport’s fire truck elevated her entry. Some of our judges weren’t aware of the original Flick but they loved the rhyme and voted for the name on that basis.”
Wendi has won a ride on the new truck when it arrives at the airport later this year, a framed photograph of the experience, a $100 Prezzy card and a voucher for Sublime Coffee at the airport.
“A big thanks to everyone who entered the competition,” Beth said. “It was a lot of fun and we were blown away by the interest and the number of entries we received. Several schools participated and the amount of thought and creativity that went into some of the suggestions was great to see.”
The new state of the art firefighting vehicle is now due to arrive in early November and will be operated by the airport’s Rescue Fire Service, which provides and maintains rescue and firefighting capability at the airport, as well as carrying out a wide range of airfield responsibilities to maintain the safety and security of the airport environment.
Wendi’s rhyme:
A great big yellow fire truck, Flick is his name. He lives at Nelson Airport now and safety is his game. Big enough and strong enough to fight every flame. If danger lurks now let's be quick, call the yellow fire truck, call the yellow fire truck, call the yellow fire truck FLICK!
Photo: Joe and Caesar, 10, of Big Brothers Big Sisters Nelson-Tasman, meet firefighters John and Murray and check out the current Nelson Airport fire truck.