In a ritual comparable to that of a baptism, South Farmingdale Fire Department's new engine, No. 971, was formally initiated into service on Sunday at a "Wet Down" ceremony.

At around 2 p.m., amid a light drizzle in the air, friends and family of the department snapped photos of the 27 men of Engine Company No. 1, standing proudly in front of their new vehicle. The Engine Committee - the five men who participated in the truck's inspection - several commanders and the department chief also flashed smiles alongside the engine's gleaming red body.

The engine's captain Christopher Traina and his wife, Janine, had the honor of breaking a bottle of champagne over the truck's front grill. After the glass shattered and the crowd cheered, a forceful stream of water came shooting down onto the new engine from the very top of a ladder truck, parked about 50 feet away. It wasn't long before members of the Carle Place, Farmingdale and Jericho Fire Departments - who came to help their compatriots in the christening - pointed their truck's hoses toward the new engine and participated in the soaking.

Jim Mezey, ex-chief of the Carle Place Fire Department, said that Carle Place and South Farmingdale are two of the eight departments in Nassau County's 9th Battalion, all who rely on one another's resources in a system of "mutual aid."

"It's a debt of gratitude," said Mezey, who showed up with about eight men to help out. They came in appreciation and to show support for what the South Farmingdale Fire Department does, he said.

A traditional, five-minute water fight quickly broke out between the four departments, which sent bursts of water flying into the air along Main Street and drenched everyone in their perimeter.

After the last hose dripped its final bit of ammunition and the saturated firefighters attempted to dry off, the remaining guests gathered around the still-dripping truck and joined in a blessing for vehicles to be used in public service, led by Father Todd of St. Kilian Church.

"It's very humbling to be a part of this," Father Todd said after his first "Wet Down" experience.

The guests then began to head into the department's empty garage, set up with round tables and chairs, for a homemade lunch.

The $250,000 custom-designed pumper truck - which replaced a 10-year-old one - was purchased from a company called Emergency One, after two years of planning by the department's Engine Committee and after considering bids from four other companies, said ex-Chief Dick Klein, chairman of the committee.

Klein said they chose Emergency One, which is based in Ocala, FL, because of factors such as price, durability and safety of the vehicle and overall roominess of the cabin.

The five committee members, whose ages ranged from the 20s to the 70s, took several trips down to Florida for "on-hand inspections" and training of the apparatus they were having built, said Karl Thuge, the sales representative from Emergency One's Huntington Station office, who helped the committee with the truck's development.

Thuge, who has been selling fire engines for 54 years, and has attended a great deal of "Wet Downs," said it's a great way to bring other departments together because they really rely on each other. It's a way to "renew their friendship with other departments," he said.