Fire Dept. to purchase ladder/ pumper truck

By Stuart Hedstrom 
Staff Writer

    DOVER-FOXCROFT — The Dover-Foxcroft Fire Department will be making an upgrade after the Board of Selectmen gave the department the approval to purchase a 1993 Pierce Arrow 100-foot tower ladder truck from a department near Chicago during a Dec. 8 special meeting. The vehicle, purchased for $50,000 with half of the funds coming from the Gray Estate and other $25,000 from fire department capital, will not only replace the current 1979 model, but will also provide a number of new benefits in fighting fires.

    “I always look and you never know what you’re going to come upon,” said Fire Chief Joe Guyotte, who was joined at the meeting by several members of the department having traveled to Illinois to examine the truck as well as a number of other firefighters. He said looking online, “We stumbled upon this piece of equipment.”   
    Guyotte said the truck was being sold due to the Midwestern fire department not having any place to store the ladder/pumper truck after purchasing a newer vehicle. He said several fire department members traveled to Illinois, and were impressed with not only the condition of the truck but also its ability to enhance the capacity of the department’s firefighting abilities and safety.
    The ladder/pumper truck supplies water to itself, so another engine does not necessarily have to be sent out and the 1993 vehicle can hook directly to the hydrant system without tying up another apparatus to supply water.
    “We felt safety-wise this is the way to go,” Guyotte said. The ladder is 25 feet longer than on the current department truck, which Guyotte said allows for operation outside of a building collapse zone (1.5 times more than the structure height). He said now 3-story buildings can be reached easier, such as the Riverfront Redevelopment facility, Masonic Hall, Foxcroft Academy dorms and other structures.
    “By getting this ’93 you are getting a newer ladder and a pumper,” Town Manager Jack Clukey said, mentioning the 1979 model is nearing the edge of what the insurance company will permit to be used without upgrades being made.
    Guyotte said the 1993 truck has an enclosed cab seating six, two more than the current model, and the bucket has a higher weight limit which can enable for more firefighters to operate safely. He said the bucket can be easily accessed from the ground and has gauges to indicate weight limit, air supply and water flow.
    The $50,000 purchase price would be paid with $25,000 from the Gray Estate — the remaining balance would then be $122,950 or just above the original amount of $120,000 when the fund was established — and $25,000 from fire department capital.
    Guyotte said the intention is to sell the 1979 truck, for no less than $25,000, with the monies then going into the Gray Estate. The chief said he had conversations with several Maine departments interested in this vehicle. “We have still got the other one, it’s in the bay,” he said, saying the vehicle will not be taken out of service until the new truck is road ready. Guyotte added that arrangements have been made for winter storage if it is not sold in the near future.
    Select Chair Elwood Edgerly asked Guyotte if changes would need to be made in the department’s budget to equipment its new truck. “What we have in the aerial will outfit this new truck,” Guyotte replied.
    “It’s never failed to pass both pump and ladder inspections,” he said, as firefighting equipment follows national standards instead of state by state. Guyotte said the 1993 truck has also never been in an accident.
    The next step, pending the board’s approval which was granted by a vote of 6-0, is to have several firefighters travel to Illinois later in the week and drive the truck back. “What our plans are when we go out on this trip is (Captain) Mark Young will video all their training; he operates the ladder truck for us,” Guyotte said.
    “This is a good deal, but what is next on your list?,” Edgerly asked. Guyotte said the next vehicle to be replaced would be the brush truck, but he said such a purchase would likely not be made for several years to replenish department accounts.