The incident happened about 4 p.m. Monday at the firehouse near Wells and Van Buren streets. Maegan Kurtz, 26, now charged with aggravated battery to a peace officer, rode up on a Divvy bike and ignored the 56-year-old fireman's efforts to stop her. They exchanged words, according to prosecutors, and Kurtz allegedly slapped the firefighter in the face.

City Council recently approved $240,752 refurbishment of Engine 16, the Fire & EMS Division’s 1995 Pierce fire engine, pending a full mechanical inspection of the vehicle. Fire Chief Jonathan Westendorf said if the fire engine passes that inspection, it will go through the refurbishment that is expected to take about three months after it’s received by the manufacturer.

Westendorf told council that officials believe the vehicle is mechanically sound, but many of the vehicle’s components are showing age and deterioration from 20 years of heavy use. He said refurbishing the fire truck could add 10 to 15 more years of service to the city.

“We feel there’s still a lot of value in this truck,” he said. “The truck has to be upgraded per NFPA (National Fire Protection Association) regs (regulations). It can’t be released back to the city without the required upgrades.”

Westendorf said refurbishing the truck would be more cost effective as it costs $475,000 to $500,000 to buy a new fire truck and that it would take about 12 months to have it delivered to the city. He said all of the fire trucks in Franklin’s fleet average about 20 years of age as the city has kept up on vehicle maintenance.