The Gary Fire Department has aging equipment, citing specifically seven trucks that have been in use for at least 17 years and some as old as 26 years. Fire Chief Paul Bradley appeared Tuesday before the Gary Common Council's finance committee, asking for the municipal government to find a way to come up with enough money to purchase five new trucks later this year.
Bradley said the department's equipment has reached a point that it cannot adequately be maintained.
He also said that circumstance complicates the Gary Fire Department's efforts to adequately cover the city's territory, while also cooperating with fire departments in surrounding Indiana communities with which it has joint agreements.
The resolution being reviewed by the Common Council calls for $2.3 million to be provided by the city to make the purchase.
"How do you propose we pay for this?" asked Councilwoman Mary Brown, D-3rd.
Bradley said that some of the money could be produced by the Fire Department itself in the form of revenue from fees it charges people whenever paramedics rush to a scene to provide medical treatment or transport.
He said ambulance fees could produce a few hundred thousand dollars of the cost of new fire equipment and trucks.
Bradley said it is important for the Gary Fire Department to maintain the size of its fleet, even though the city has dropped in population significantly in recent decades.