Council approves fire truck repairs

By Melinda L. Lucas

A special July 26 city council meeting to take action concerning repair of the Albany Volunteer Fire Department’s 2002 “second out” fire truck resulted in a motion to spend $25,389 to upgrade the vehicle.

Because the item was not on the agenda of the July 10 regular meeting, no action could be taken at that time, and AVFD fire chief Joel Viertel had expressed concern about the time frame to get the truck back to Albany.

Viertel reported last week, however, that he had already brought the truck back from Mansfield following a scare when the VFD’s main truck had “gone down” following a recent call.

“As it turned out, it was just out of gas, and the gauge wasn’t working,” said Viertel. “It was still an eye-opener, and we felt that we needed the other truck back in Albany.”

Problems that showed up in the recent inspection totalled $94,000 in repairs covering everything from valve replacement to a license light bulb.

“It was an insane amount,” Viertel said. “And a lot of it was unnecessary to keep the truck in service.”

He explained that he and other AVFD officers pared the list down by $60,000 to a more manageable $25,389, which he admitted was still considerable for a 21-year-old vehicle.

“We like this truck, and our hope is to get another 5-10 years out of it,” he said. “We are trying to be responsible, and we think this is the best way.”

The city’s restricted fire department account currently stands at about $200,000.

“The fire department has spent a lot in the last six months, but it’s money well spent,” council member Austin Sherwood said. “There will be times when we have to say ‘no’ or ‘not right now,’ but things like this are really important. ”

Sherwood made the motion to approve the $25,389, with a second from Lester Galbreath.

The truck will be taken back for service when all parts have come in, with the exception of a radiator, which will take 15-20 weeks to get once it’s been ordered.