Thunderstorms likely this morning. Then a chance of scattered thunderstorms this afternoon. High around 80F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 100%. Localized flooding is possible..

Scattered showers and thunderstorms. Low near 70F. Winds E at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 50%.

LOUISBURG — An 18-year-old fire truck at the Louisburg station will be delegated to reserve status in the coming months.

The County Commission gave Emergency Management Coordinator Mark Whelan permission on Jan. 12 to seek bids for the 2004 Freightliner’s replacement. But unlike the customary practice of trading in the older model, the county will keep the truck, Engine No. 620, as a second-line unit at the Louisburg station or possibly relocated to a future substation in the northern part of the county.

The county recently purchased a tract of land north of Hillsdale to construct a new Emergency Medical Services ambulance station. The acreage is large enough to accommodate a new fire station in the future, though the county has no definite plans for putting a substation there at this time.

Whelan told county commissioners that industry standards recommend a front-line engine get replaced every 15 years, and it can maintain reserve status for an additional five years.

“It’s going to be on a custom cab and chassis,” Whelan said of the new engine. “It seats six firefighters. It has a 1,500-gallon-per-minute pump, a 1,000-gallon tank and a 30-gallon foam tank, and it will have a rescue body so it can carry all the extrication equipment.”

Whelan said the replacement truck is budgeted at $450,000 in the 2022 Capital Improvement Budget.

“We have identified seven vendors who will probably bid on the project,” Whelan said. “Once the contract is approved, depending on the manufacturer, we’re probably looking at a one- to two-year lead time on the vehicle.”

Normally the older fire truck is traded in and the equipment is transferred to the newly purchased fire engine. Because the county plans to hold the Louisburg engine in reserve, the equipment will remain on the truck to ensure it is still a functioning fire engine.

“When we’re going out to bid for the actual truck itself, do these same vendors offer equipment that would go along with the truck?” Commissioner Tyler Vaughan said. “And is there opportunity for bundled savings for a fully equipped truck, not just the truck itself but the tools that would come with it — that we would have to buy afterward?”

Whelan said there could be an opportunity for bundled savings.

“At today’s prices, we are probably looking at $100,000 to $125,000 to equip the engine with all the loose equipment,” he said.

Commissioner George Pretz asked Whelan if there was enough inventory to equip a new engine.

“We don’t even have enough hose,” Whelan said. “You can’t get hose right now. Nobody has it.”

Commission Chair Rob Roberts suggested putting out a two-part bid.

“You could do the bid in a twofold, meaning here’s what we had budgeted for and here’s what it would be if we added this equipment,” Roberts said.

Commissioners voted 5-0 to use the twofold approach that Roberts suggested.

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