RAYMOND —The Fire Department soon should be able to ditch its old, converted tanker truck for a new one after receiving a competitive federal grant.
Since the 1990s, the department has been using a converted tractor trailer truck as its tanker so that it can fight fires in rural areas without access to fire hydrants, said Deputy Chief Cathy Gosselin.
Given the age of the old tanker, and the fact that it wasn’t designed as a firefighting apparatus in the first place, the department applied and was chosen for a $261,905 grant through the federal Assistance to Firefighters Grant program in order to purchase a new tanker truck.
That program, administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, aims “to meet the firefighting and emergency response needs of fire departments and non-affiliated emergency medical service organizations,” according to FEMA. Vehicle grants like the one Raymond is receiving are the most competitive, it says.
Gosselin, who wrote the grant application, said that the old 3,000-gallon tanker has “lived it’s lifespan” and is ready for retirement. She expects the department to have a new truck in the next six to nine months.
That process will be driven by a select committee that will identify what exactly the town is looking for in a new tanker truck, and then put out a call for bids from several fire truck manufacturers. According to Gosselin, the committee may look into getting a demo truck or one already in stock in order to keep costs down.
Raymond has committed to covering 10 percent of the trucks costs, she said, in addition to whatever funds gained from the sale of the old tanker. Gosselin estimates the cost of the new truck to be about $300,000.
Gosselin said the committee’s first meeting was scheduled for Thursday, July 20, and that numerous people had already expressed interested in being part of it.
Matt Junker can be reached at 781-3661 ext. 123 or mjunker@theforecaster.net. Follow him on Twitter: @MattJunker.
The current tanker truck used by the Raymond Fire Department. With the help of a federal grant, the department plans to purchase a new tanker truck.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.