HAMILTON — The Hamilton Town Council approved the purchase Tuesday of a Ford F-550 for the volunteer fire department.

The truck can handle water and foam for brush fires, has a winch that can be used to move trees that fall onto roads during storms and seats six, which is more than the department’s fire engine holds.

Fire Chief Scott Bates said the truck will be able to go places the fire engine or ambulance cannot, allowing the department to be more versatile.

Having a second vehicle capable of helping with fires also means that if staff is available two fires can be responded to at the same time. A second vehicle will also cut down on use of the town’s fire engine, which is a 2006 model, allowing it to last longer.

The vehicle and volunteers could also help the state Department of Natural Resources with wildfires throughout the state should the town choose to get certified to do so.

Natural Resource would reimburse the town for its help.

Helping with wildfires is what the truck was made to do, Bates said.

“I believe it’s a worthwhile investment,” he said. “I believe that we should invest in our town.”

Hamilton Clerk Treasurer Kym Eldridge said a brand-new version of the truck would cost $300,000. This truck, which was used by firefighters in Island County, cost less than a third of that.

On Tuesday, the council also appointed Karin Vail to the council seat left vacant when Mandy Bates became mayor.

Vail has lived in town for more than 20 years and works for Janicki Industries.

“I raised my kids here and I’ll retire here,” she said.

Now that her kids are grown, Vail said she has more time to be involved, which is why she applied for the council position.

— Reporter Racquel Muncy: rmuncy@skagitpublishing.com, 360-416-2139, Twitter: @Racquel_SVH

Email notifications are only sent once a day, and only if there are new matching items.

Your comment has been submitted.

There was a problem reporting this.

Keep it Clean. Please avoid obscene, vulgar, lewd, racist or sexually-oriented language. PLEASE TURN OFF YOUR CAPS LOCK. Don't Threaten. Threats of harming another person will not be tolerated. Be Truthful. Don't knowingly lie about anyone or anything. Be Nice. No racism, sexism or any sort of -ism that is degrading to another person. Be Proactive. Use the 'Report' link on each comment to let us know of abusive posts. Share with Us. We'd love to hear eyewitness accounts, the history behind an article.

Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.

Check your email for details.

Invalid password or account does not exist

Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.

An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the e-mail address listed on your account.

Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.

A receipt was sent to your email.