The committee started looking for a new truck about a year and a half ago. The 2008 Pierce was last used by the Chester Fire Department in Orange County.  

The cost, $339,000, was paid for by a material equipment fund in the village budget, which builds up each year until the department needs it. Nieskes said the department hoped to buy a new truck, but it had to use $138,000 from the equipment fund two years ago for new air packs because the department did not get a grant.

Over the years, the amphibious Ford changed hands and eventually fell on hard times. That is, until the Southern Oregon Historical Society (SOHS) took it on as something of a special "all-volunteer" project. With many hours, donations, and elbow-grease, the fire engine is back in working order.  

Now, according to SOHS, the amphibious fire engine will be proudly on display at the Ashland Fourth of July Parade. After the parade, the engine will be parked on Ashland Plaza. The public will be welcome to climb inside the engine and try out all the antique bells and whistles.

Reardon charged the fire department at least $15,000 for work he claimed to have done last summer. But shortly after the truck was returned, the department noticed a leak in question had grown worse, and defective areas had been covered in fresh spray paint rather than fixed.  

In December 2017, Reardon returned to the fire house to check on the pumper. Records show he apologized for not making the repair and promised to repay Westport taxpayers.