The Pelham City Council heard a presentation related to the Pelham Fire Department’s current plans to purchase new fire apparatus during its work session on June 17, shelbyreporter.com reported.
During the session, a city official and a fire official presented their findings and their recommendation related to a plan, made several years ago, that would have called for the procurement of another quint, according to the report.
While quints are immensely useful to any fire department, the vehicle’s large utility armament comes at the expense of being much heavier than other models, the report said. This increased weight puts a far greater load on the engine itself and ultimately results in a shorter lifespan than other engines, the report said.
A quint has a 10-year lifespan whereas the life of a ladder truck is 20 years and the life of a pumper is 15 years, according to the report.
In the presentation, it was revealed that there would be a savings of $269,038 if the city decided to go with the ladder truck and pumper versus purchasing another quint, the report said.
The City Council approved the contract and the purchase of the two vehicles instead of the quint unanimously.
The fund previously set up to purchase a new quint now contains $900,000, but $2.8 million will be required to purchase the two new recommended trucks, according to the report. Ordering those trucks will also include a 40-month lead time on all orders.
