Miami Valley Fire Departments Pay More and Wait Longer for New Trucks
Riverside waited 18 months for a roughly $1 million engine. Springfield bought a used ladder truck from Pennsylvania instead of paying about $2 million for a new one.
Fire departments around the Miami Valley are waiting years for new trucks that often cost more than they can afford, and some are changing how they buy them, WHIO reported Oct. 26.
Riverside: a simpler truck
The Riverside Fire Department recently received a new engine that cost the city roughly $1 million, according to WHIO. The basic truck took 18 months to come from the factory. Fire Chief Mark Miller said the department ordered a simpler design to speed production and skipped many features of the truck it replaced. "It's just a simple spec which speeds the building process up," Miller said, according to the station.
Riverside saved for two years to buy it. "It's a shell game. We saved up for two years to make this purchase," Miller said, according to WHIO. He expects the engine to last more than 20 years.
Springfield: buying used
When Springfield went shopping for a new ladder truck, the price was $2 million with a wait of more than a year, WHIO reported; Fire Chief Jacob King later put the cost of a new ladder truck at $2.2 million. Instead, the city bought a used ladder truck from a Pennsylvania fire department for $1 million, saving about $1 million, according to the report.
"We searched high and low all across the country," King said, according to WHIO. "It's just like going to buy a used car; you're kind of on the hook, right, if it doesn't work out."
Springfield Finance Director Katie Eviston said, "It was more important for us to evaluate what can our community afford, what can they support," according to the station.
Used trucks are getting more expensive too. "There's only so many used trucks," said Jon Harvey of the Ohio Association of Professional Firefighters, according to WHIO.
The bigger picture
WHIO reported that only three major companies build fire trucks in the U.S., that they have not increased production, and that waits can run as long as five years. Congress is examining manufacturer consolidation, rising costs and build delays, the station reported; what lawmakers will do is unclear.
King said the scrutiny "buys us time, right, to find out what's going to happen in the congressional hearings," according to WHIO, adding that he hopes for shorter build times and lower costs.