The council voted 7-1 to approve a two-year option on three parcels of land, located just off Howard Blvd., between 46th and 47th Ave, east of Cubbies gas station.  

The city will pay $100 for the right to purchase the land for $180,000. The city is waiting to buy the land until the voters pass a bond issue that would secure funding for a new fire station and police station.

City administrator Tara Vasicek said at the meeting, if the plan goes through to exercise the option for a new station, the city will look at using the currently unmanned Charlie Louis Station located on 424 8th St, in order to provide a fast emergency response to the entire city.

The new truck’s graphics, which were created by White Horse Graphics of Lairdsville, are just one of many features which stand out on the $925,000 vehicle.  

The department’s former truck, which was sold to a fire company in Coudersport, was 50 feet in length.

At 39 feet, the new truck will be easier to maneuver into tight spaces. The ladder on the new truck can be extended to 107-feet long, which is seven feet longer than the former truck’s ladder.

The truck, operated by RJ Corman Railroad Company, was traveling down the hill off Alton Station Road and slid through the stop sign on the snow-covered road and tore off a large corner section of the fire station.  

The driver was not injured, but the building sustained considerable damage and fire officials were working to shore up the corner.

The northbound lanes of Wolf Valley Road were blocked for roughly two hours after the crash, which was near Pechanga Parkway and the Pechanga Resort and Casino, according to a witness.  

Ambulances transported the two firefighters to an area hospital for evaluation, Newman said. There were no other injuries reported.

A witness reported the female driver of the pickup declined medical treatment, and the fire engine appeared to have visible damage to a rear lower tool box, located behind the passenger side rear wheels, and was also leaking a significant amount of water from the tank/pump area.

“In this case, employees had no idea,” Wichita Fire Marshal Stuart Bevis said. “The vehicles were parked during work and we were not attending to the vehicle directly. That’s how they were able to get in and use it as a backdrop.”  

Bevis added that the rappers also went into various stores in Towne East Square for backdrops.