Houlton to proceed with buying rescue truck

HOULTON – The town will move ahead with its decision to buy a new rescue truck for the Houlton Fire Department after a handful of petitioners failed to collect enough signatures to convince town councilors to reconsider the decision.

Town Clerk Cathy O’Leary said Friday that the six petitioners – Stanley Ginish, Carl Lord, Priscilla Lord, Philip Bernaiche, Paul Romanelli and Galen Wilde – were unsuccessful in their bid to get the required 422 signatures before the recent deadline.

If the petition drive had succeeded, councilors would have reconsidered their decision in late May to purchase the $247,850 truck.

After a lengthy debate during that meeting, councilors voted to acquire the new truck to replace a 1992 model that is now too small for the department’s needs. The vehicle will be used by both the fire and ambulance departments and is expected to last for at least 10 years.

Councilors set aside the money for Phase 1 of the five-phase vehicle purchase while planning the budget last year. The Sockanossett Hose Co., which is the volunteer unit of the Fire Department, donated $20,000 toward the purchase of the truck last fall.

The old rescue truck will be recycled into a brush truck to replace a model used since the 1950s.

Houlton provides both fire and ambulance services for surrounding towns, which involves carrying considerably more equipment than the current 1992 model truck can carry. Houlton firefighters also respond to accidents and other calls at the Houlton port of entry and on Interstate 95. They now must put their extrication and life-saving equipment on two trucks just to get it to an accident scene. They first made councilors aware of the situation and their need for another truck in 2003.

Fire Chief Milton Cone told councilors in May that he tried unsuccessfully to secure a grant to purchase the vehicle.

Although the price of the truck was an issue for some councilors, the major concern in May was whether the department needed the medium-sized vehicle. At the May meeting, some councilors expressed frustration that certain information was lacking then, such as the current rescue truck’s capacity and exactly how much equipment must be taken to a scene.

Councilor Carl Lord eventually motioned to table a decision on the matter until Cone had researched the feasibility of buying a used truck or a smaller vehicle. The tactic failed, and the board voted 4-2 to purchase the new truck. The petitioners started gathering signatures a short time later.

The rescue truck will be paid for in installments of $49,570 per year over five years.