WILTON – At the suggestion of Town Manager Peter Nielsen, selectmen voted Tuesday to form a firetruck advisory committee to study replacing an out-of-service engine.
“We’ve had a stormy process so far,” Nielsen said in introducing his idea, but there is expertise in the Fire Department and the community that can be helpful in figuring out how the town should go forward with fire apparatus, he said.
Resident Edgar Adams brought the board to a stunned silence when he asked, “What do we pay in cost of life if these gentlemen can’t do their jobs when they get to a fire?”
The town currently has only one working pumper truck and safety regulations require that a second truck respond, in this case from another town, before firefighters can begin to attack a fire.
Adams also described a fire in his garage that burned longer than necessary due to a failed $4 valve on a pumper truck.
“We, the people of this town, elected you five gentlemen to represent us,” Adams said. “I don’t believe there should be an impasse. We’ve already given you the authority to speak for us.”
After a brief pause, Chairman Russell Black said the board had previously voted not to do anything until a regionalization study is complete. He said he believed a committee would provide a broad range of opinions.
“If we’re going to spend that money, we want to make sure that it’s going to last at least 20 years,” he added.
Most recent reports from Fire Chief Sonny Dunham indicate a new truck, not “top of the line,” will cost approximately $250,000.
“I’m not sure how the town feels about spending $250,000,” Selectman Paul Gooch said in support of the committee.
Though Dunham agreed the committee was a good idea, he was obviously frustrated.
“We’ve battled over this. The Fire Department has done everything we’ve been asked to do and we’re still not anywhere,” he said. “What you’re expecting on this report, I’ve yet to figure out,” he added about the regionalization report that may take up to three more months to receive.
“It doesn’t seem we’re getting enough credit that we know what we’re talking about,” he continued. “We can go with this committee but the longer we go, the longer it will take to get (a truck).”
Selectmen can choose a truck for the Fire Department and, though the process may be contentious, the board wants to make the right decision, Selectman Rodney Hall said.
“We can park a new truck on their doorstep tomorrow,” he said, but the board wants to ensure they are meeting the needs of the Fire Department and the taxpayers.
Selectmen agreed something needs to be done and soon. They voted to form a six- to nine-person committee comprised of firefighters, at least one finance committee member, other interested residents and perhaps a selectman. The group will meet weekly in the hopes of having a recommendation for selectmen by January. Residents interested in serving on the committee should contact Peter Nielsen at the town office at 645-4961 before the next selectmen’s meeting Dec. 6.
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