Politics & Government

Legal Snag Delays Replacement Fire Truck

A fire truck destroyed in a fire this summer will take at least a year to replace after town officials decided the purchase must go to a public bid.

A plan to speed-up the replacement of a damaged truck has been halted, after town attorneys agreed that buying a new truck without putting out a public bid would be against the law.

West Harrison Fire Chief Steve Mancini had proposed purchasing a new truck immediately because he considers the department's two remaining trucks unreliable. By law, the town is required to place such purchases out to public bid—a process that takes several months—unless there is an emergency. 

But town and village attorneys say replacing the truck doesn't fall under the legal guidelines for an emergency purchase. The town board sided with the attorneys' recomendation last week, Mayor/Supervisor Joan Walsh confirmed.

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The fire truck in question was damaged when it on July 12 during routine maintenance. The truck was declared a loss four days later.

Two of the department's three remaining trucks are 12 and 21 years old. Mancini said that fighting a large-scale emergency with two unreliable trucks could present a problem. 

Find out what's happening in Harrisonwith free, real-time updates from Patch.

"Right now I can only truly guarantee coverage with one engine," Mancini told the board.

Mancini argued that buying a new truck now would also make financial sense. The price of a new truck will increase about 10 percent in 2012, according to his estimates. He had hoped to spend about $550,000 on the replacement truck if approved this year.

The bidding process typically takes about three months. Once a bid is accepted, building the new truck usually takes another eight months, meaning a replacement likely won't be ready for service until late 2012.

About $390,000 of the cost to replace the truck will be covered by insurance; the remaining balance is already covered in the fire department's operating budget for next year.


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