City prepares to buy another fire engine
Published 9:59 pm Sunday, May 1, 2016
Just months after buying a new fire engine, Washington is in the market for another one.
Robbie Rose, chief of the Washington Fire-Rescue- EMS Department, informed the City Council on Monday that Engine 3, a reserve engine, failed a recent test because its pump is not working properly. Repairing the pump would cost at least $12,000, said Rose, adding that he does not believe the city should invest that much money in repairing the fire engine, which is 28 years old.
The City Council voted 4-1 to spend about $500,000 for a fire engine to replace Engine 3. Council members Richard Brooks, Virginia Finnerty, William Pitt and Larry Beeman voted to buy the apparatus, with Councilman Doug Mercer dissenting.
Rose said not having Engine 3 available to respond to structure fires could affect the city’s fire rating, which influences fire-insurance rates. To help protect that rating, the city and the Bunyan Volunteer Fire Department are negotiating a mutual-aid agreement that calls for the Bunyan department to send a fire engine to structure fires in the city.
Mercer lobbied for repairing the pump on Engine 3, then using Engine 3 until Rose and his staff could design a custom-built fire engine and have it manufactured.
Council members debated the merits of Mercer’s proposal and acquiring a new fire engine — either a custom-built one or a functioning “demo” engine — as soon as possible. The council majority believe acquiring a new fire engine is more prudent and better protects the city’s fire rating, a five out of 10.
Last year, the council approved funding for a new front-line fire engine. But discrepancies with the year model for that new apparatus were discovered by fire department personnel during an inspection of the vehicle, according to Rose. In a memorandum to the mayor and council, Rose wrote that “in consideration that this was inconsistent with the information originally provided to the Council for consideration; we terminated that purchase transaction.”
On Sept. 28, 2015, the council authorized spending $450,000 on a new fire engine from C.W. Williams Co. in Rocky Mount. The company services the city’s fire engines.
Rose wrote that the department sent requests to seven fire-engine vendors for bids to provide the department with in-stock/demonstration models. An eighth vendor contacted the department about submitting its bid, Rose noted. After reviewing the proposals, the department recommends the city buy a stock 2015 Pierce fire engine from Atlantic Emergency Solutions at a cost of $448,995.
The Pierce fire engine best meets the immediate needs of the department for a front-line fire engine, according to Rose.
During Monday’s meeting, Rose said firefighters are extremely pleased with that engine.