Aug 1, 2006 By Patty Yauger 3 min read

Fire trucks that once raced from the station to the scene of a blaze, but later were no longer useful to the department, found a home with Sullivan D’Amico. Over the years, the founder of Pechin’s accumulated more than 125 trucks from various communities as they sought to replace the antiquated equipment or no longer had the facilities to store them.

On Saturday, approximately 70 trucks in the D’Amico collection will be sold during a live auction at the Denbo Marina.

“We’ve got them out of all the other (storage) buildings and brought them here,” said Sherrie Higinbotham-Butchko, co-owner of Higinbotham-Butchko Auction Service Inc. of Dunbar. “They are lined up and ready to go.”

The Saturday auction is the second to be held by the D’Amico estate to clear the trucks from the various properties where the family patriarch stored them.

D’Amico died in February 2005.

Several area fire companies and/or their communities, including Connellsville, Bullskin Township, Isabella, Brownsville, Monarch and Hiller, that once held title to the trucks will have equipment in the latest auction.

Ladder trucks and tankers manufactured by Mack, Howe-International, American LaFrance, Seagrave and Pirsch with some dating back to the 1940s, will be up for sale.

“We’re getting a lot of attention about a Maxim (fire truck) that was owned by a Vermont fire department,” said Higinbotham-Butchko.

The Massachusetts-based manufacturer closed its operations in 1989.

The 1971 Sutphen Duplex aerial truck once used by the Connellsville Fire Department was sold to D’Amico a few years ago, said Dennis Petrowski, department assistant chief, when the city secured a replacement truck that better suited the needs of the city.

While the city has no plans to recoup the equipment, the Monessen Fire Department has its eye on the truck, said Higinbotham-Butchko.

“Many of the fire trucks will not fight a fire again, but the (former Connellsville truck) can with some repairs,” she said.

The first fire truck sale held in March, sent nearly 70 trucks to new locations or returned to previous owners, said Higinbotham-Butchko.

While D’Amico was known for his fire truck collection, he also assembled an eclectic group of automobiles that were sold in May.

Nearly 95 cars were on the auction block with 84 sold, said Higinbotham-Butchko.

“The cars sold were the ‘wow’ cars,” she said of the vintage and classic automobiles.

The remaining collection, that includes a variety of 1980 and newer models, will be sold during an auction scheduled for Sept. 16 at the former Pechin Shopping Village.

The Saturday auction also includes a variety of miscellaneous fire truck parts and first aid equipment.

The Denbo Marina will be open Friday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. for those interested in inspecting the vehicles prior to Saturday’s live auction.

The auction will begin at 10 a.m.

Additional information and photographs can be found at www.auctionzip.com keyword Denbo.