Dracut Firefighter Nehemiah Carter stands with his fiancée Saisha Carrucini. (Courtesy Dracut Fire Department)

DRACUT — Off-duty Dracut Firefighters held a special gender reveal for a new member of the Dracut Fire Department family who is expecting a child.

Firefighter Nehemiah Carter is an 8-year veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps who has served with the Dracut Fire Department for just over a year. Firefighter Carter serves on Engine 1, stationed at Fire Department Headquarters on Pleasant Street.

Firefighter Carter’s fiancée, Saisha Carrucini, another U.S. Marine Corps veteran, is 18 weeks pregnant.

Capt. Sean Bushnell helped organize the celebration and kept the secret of the baby’s gender until it was revealed in a ceremony on Saturday morning at the Headquarters fire station.

Firefighter Carter gets a hug from a family member after the reveal (Courtesy Dracut Fire Department)

Off-duty firefighters, using a spare fire engine, set up a hose line so that as Firefighter Carter sprayed it into the station’s parking lot, the water coming out of the hose would turn either blue or pink.

The water turned pink at about 1pm Saturday, prompting cries of joy from family, friends and fellow firefighters in attendance. Carter’s 11-year-old son Nehemiah Carter Jr. was among those cheering the loudest.

Capt. Bushnell said firefighters become like brothers and sisters as they work 24-hour shifts together in the fire station, sharing meals, holidays, cleaning and major life events as they work to protect the community.

“Firefighter Nehemiah Carter came to me a few weeks ago and asked if it would be ok to do a gender reveal for the new addition to his family. I thought it was a great idea. We all have family at home but the firehouse is your home away from home and we consider it our second family,” said Chief Cunha. “Throughout a career, we celebrate birthdays and spend many holidays together. So in a way, it is a second family. Nehemiah and Saisha are excited to welcome a new addition to their family and we are excited as their extended family at the firehouse! What better way to embrace that family atmosphere than to do a reveal together!”