The West Carthage Fire Department recently received delivery of two new pumper trucks. According to Fire Chief Peter M. Crump Jr., the new equipment is more advanced. "There's been a lot of changes from 1993 until 2016," said the chief, referring to the year the previous trucks were purchased.
"The new trucks are more safe, do more and are bigger. Things are simplified. A panel of electronics makes things easier and cuts down on manual operation. It's more user-friendly and cuts down on user error."
He said the five-member truck committee received extensive training through the manufacturer, Wilde Fire
Mayor Scott M. Burto noted the village had the trucks which were used as trade-ins refurbished about 10 years ago to extend their useful life and save the village money.
He said the village had originally planned to purchase one truck this year and another in two years. However, with a 10 percent to 15 percent increase in costs, it was realized that a savings of more than $30,000 would be realized if both were purchased now.
"Wilde Fire Equipment offered to further reduce the price by $25,000 a truck if we purchased both of them together," said Mr. Burto. "The final cost of the two trucks after discounts and trade-in were $700,000. The village put $100,000 cash down from the firetruck reserve fund that the board established years ago. The remaining $600,000 was financed for 15 years."