This hue is inspired by the blazing red of fire engines, a tradition that took hold in the early 1900s. With Henry Ford’s Model T cars flooding the roads in black, many fire departments chose red to stand out—some because it was a sharp contrast, others because red paint was more expensive and symbolized prestige. The color also carried ready-made associations with urgency and danger. While studies in the 1960s and ’70s showed lime-yellow fire trucks were safer and more visible at night, the classic red endured, cementing itself as a global symbol of firefighting tradition and bravery.