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Othello buys new fire truck

by CHERYL SCHWEIZER
Staff Writer | April 14, 2021 1:00 AM

OTHELLO — The city of Othello will spend $637,670 to buy a new fire truck.

Mayor Shawn Logan said the new truck is what’s called a pumper, which gets most of its water supply from a fire hydrant and is primarily used to fight structure fires. The truck will be built from the chassis up, and construction will take a year to 18 months.

Othello City Council members voted April 5 to buy the truck and make a down payment of 75% of its total cost. Logan said that would earn the city a discount on the final purchase and he estimated the city would save about $10,897.

City officials have been saving for a new truck, and the city is projected to have about $600,000 in its fire equipment reserve fund by the end of 2021. City officials will have to come up with the balance, about $38,000, by the time the new truck is delivered in fall 2022. Logan said that will be part of the 2022 budget process.

The fire truck is being purchased through a bid obtained by ACFD 5. During the March 22 meeting, council members discussed a separate city bid process and the possibility of finding a cheaper price, but the fire department bid would have expired while the city was going through its bid process, so council members opted to go with the existing bid.

City officials contract with Adams County Fire District 5 for firefighting services, but the city buys its own trucks. The new truck will join the city’s two existing pumpers, one of which, purchased in 1993, is scheduled for replacement in about 2023.