Fire engine

Fire engines are vehicles used by firefighters. The earliest fire engines consisted of little more than a fire hose, and a pump, and possibly a small reservoir of water. The earliest fire engines were towed to the site of a fire by manpower, or horsepower.

Later fire engines were built on trucks.

Firefighters employ at least two different kinds of trucks, regular pumper trucks, and ladder trucks, capable of extending tall ladders to windows on some upper floors of burning buildings.

Fire engines are painted in high visibility colors, like red, white, or yellow. They are generally equipped with powerful sirens, turned on to indicate their mission will require them to break the usual rules of the road - like travelling through traffic stops where they do not have the usual right of way.