Hollywood Firefighter Responds to Call from Ol' Betsy

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Back in early 80’s, a 15-year old Tom Gallo was busy rebuilding his first car, a 1972 Chevy Vega. What started as Motor Trend’s Car of the Year in 1971, had become widely known for a variety engine troubles. The teen replaced the faulty 4-cylinder with a V8 and launched his lifelong passion for rebuilding and restoring automobiles. Gallo, Hollywood Fire Rescue’s Fleet Superintendent is a self-proclaimed Chevy guy with 10W-40 coursing through his veins. He’s worked on a string of Corvettes, followed by the full resurrection of a classic car show charmer, a 1957 Bel Air, and taken home more than 50 show trophies for his handiwork. All the projects and training as a master mechanic have prepared Gallo for his latest, and possibly greatest challenge – the restoration of “Ol Betsy,” the City’s 1925 American LaFrance Fire Truck.

She’s the last surviving piece of equipment from the charter of the department, and she was in active service until 1965. Ol Betsy’s final call was to pump out the Diplomat Hotel’s basement after Hurricane Betsy, hence the name. For the past decade she sat motionless outside Fire/Rescue Department headquarters, calling out to Gallo with a promise of greatness hidden just under the tarnished brass, below the rusted fittings, and behind the corroded nozzles and knobs. Gallo could see the beauty and felt the history, and just knew in his heart that it would be him bring “Ol Betsy” back to life.

“I saw that truck deteriorating outside and it really bothered me because that’s our history,” says Gallo It’s our history of this Fire Department and of our City and I couldn’t let that truck just sit there and rot away.”

With support from Hollywood Fire Chief Dan Booker and the City Administration, just over a year ago Gallo and his right-hand man/master mechanic Tony Lobaldo began to tinker with the truck.
“I had no idea what I was getting myself into,” Gallo admits. “My whole life has been dedicated to restoring old cars. It’s my hobby, but I have never had as big a project or restored a fire truck!”
Top on the project “To Do” list was to get the truck out of the weather and into the fleet maintenance auto shop. Once that was accomplished, the next big test was to get the engine running. Little by little, over the course of two months, the seized engine slowly loosed its grip and sputtered back to life.

“When we got the engine running for the first time I was shocked. It smoked a lot and some flames shot out,” recounted Gallo, But the more we worked with it, the better she ran. We got it to stop smoking and it actually runs pretty good now, for a 100 year old engine.”

After some makeshift repairs to the wooden spoked wheels, both Gallo and Lobaldo climbed aboard and drove the truck on a very short test drive around the parking lot to the cheers and applause of the Fire Command Staff.

“It was quite a sight to see the two of them up there on the truck actually driving it around,” says Chief Booker. “I got to hand it to them. I didn’t think I would ever see the day it would run, but they’ve kept at it. They are volunteering hours of their own time and talents to this project.”
60% of Gallo’s time is spent on the computer at night and over his weekends researching replacement parts. He reads blogs, watches do-it-yourself videos, and chats with others who have accomplished the seemingly impossible task of restoring a 100-year old fire engine. He also finds time to raise money to pay for parts, and to master chroming and powder coat painting techniques on small parts.

“I am very proud of their dedication and determination,” says Booker. I am excited to see what’s accomplished next!”

After their successful “joy” ride, the next hurdle was finding a craftsman to reproduce the wooden spoked wheels and steel rims. Nearly 4 months later, they’re almost finished.
“We’re at that point now again where we can put the wheels back on it and get it started back up again. Once we know it rolls, shifts, stops and doesn’t overheat, then the next big thing for us to do is to take the whole truck apart and bag and tag every single part,” says Gallo. “The motor is going to come out, the wheels will come back off, the body will be removed and it will just be a rolling frame. We’ll blast it, prime it, paint it and bring the restoration back up to whole again.”
Gallo expects the work to take another two years, but he is 100% confident he will get Ol Betsy restored.

“Almost everything I am touching is one of kind and if you mess it up you aren’t getting another one and you don’t get a second chance to fix it.”
Once fixed, plans for Ol Betsy includes participating in City parades, and using her as an educational tool as a way for audiences both young and old to learn about the department and the history of Hollywood in the process.

Visit the Hollywood Fire Fighters Benevolent Association’s Go Fund Me Page to contribute: