Ephrata approves changes to new fire truck order

EPHRATA — Ephrata’s new fire truck is seeing a bit of a delay and will cost about $74,000 more than initially anticipated due to multiple factors, Ephrata Fire Chief Jeremy Burns said.

“It’s about $64,000 for engine, transmission and driveline and there’s another dozen components besides the engine and transmission,” he said.

Another $10,000 in change orders to the fire engine have been submitted that will accommodate specific needs the Ephrata Fire Department has, Burns said. The change orders and other complications such as supply lines have delayed the overall process. The most recent change comes as the engine selected to power the truck – a 380-horsepower motor – is no longer produced by the manufacturer, Cummins. That model is no longer produced due to federal emissions requirements. However, a higher-horsepower motor – churning out up to 500 horsepower – will operate some of the fire engine’s secondary equipment such as pumps better, Burns said.

Council Member Matt Moore expressed concern that the increase in price seemed extraordinary, especially given production delays that had already been seen. He said it seemed as though upgrading the engine and related powertrain components shouldn’t be as high as the change order to the contract with Cascade Fire & Safety to procure the fire truck showed.

“I would invite Cascade to sharpen their pencil and redo the math,” Moore said.

Burns said there were multiple factors that made the math leading to the cost increase reasonable. Inflation and supply line issues have driven costs higher, he said. Additionally, the city had saved more than $30,000 in costs by choosing the smaller motor it had initially ordered, so the cost for the higher-horsepower motor, while eliminating the savings, was reasonable when compounded with the other factors in the economy.

Council members also expressed concern that the cost of the truck was escalating overall. However, Burns said the contract for the truck prevented the original cost of the vehicle from exceeding 5% of the bid amount Cascade had delivered, barring approved change orders or changes on the city’s part.

The council eventually approved the change orders unanimously after Burns explained pricing factors in the purchase of the vehicle and the subsequent changes.

Other business the council moved forward with included a budget amendment to move funds within the budget to address unexpected costs associated with the fire engine and other city projects, especially those related to safety. They also approved a lease agreement with Lifeline Ambulance Services for space in the city’s Fire Department at $1 per square foot plus tax, and an agreement with Live Nation Concerts for security services at The Gorge, which Police Chief Erik Koch assured council members would not detract from the availability of officers in Ephrata.

R. Hans “Rob” Miller may be reached at editor@columbiabasinherald.com. A U.S. Army veteran, he resides in Ephrata with his wife, Brandee, and their three dogs, Draco, Pepper and Cinnamon.