By Sterling Fire Department
With the annual Town Meeting quickly approaching on Monday June 14, the Sterling Fire Department would like to summarize its articles on the annual Town Meeting warrant. Some of these articles were pushed out from last year’s town meeting due to the COVID pandemic. We ask for your continued support in voting favorably on the following:
Hiring of an additional full-time daytime firefighter/paramedic. This position would offset the full-time position approved at the June 2020 annual town meeting. This position would work four 12-hour days, with four days off. This allows for staffing of four personnel during the daytime, when incident volume is greatest, and most of our call firefighters are out of town working their full-time jobs. It is also the time when traffic volume is higher, schools are in session, and our commercial businesses are fully operational. Funding for this additional position will be offset by receipts obtained through ambulance revenue. The Article seeks $62,286 for this position and has been supported by the Finance Committee. Though the Select Board does not support this position, the members have supported allowing the article on the warrant so that the voters can decide.
Replace Rescue 1. This replacement has been on the town Capital Plan for the past eight years. Rescue 1 is a 1990 E-One Rescue/Pumper, bought used from Pennsylvania in 1997. The request is to replace it with a medium-duty rescue which would consist of a Ford cab and chassis with a small pump and compartmentation to hold the equipment currently carried, including vehicle extrication and hazardous materials response equipment. It will also allow our non-commercial licensed operators to drive this valuable equipment to motor vehicle accidents, and other hazard and rescue related incidents. To replace Rescue 1 with a full-size Rescue/Pumper would cost approximately $650,000. The cost for this proposed replacement is $350,000 and has been supported by the Finance Committee and Select Board.
Replace Car 2/Paramedic Response Vehicle. This will replace a 2007 Chevrolet Tahoe (former fire chief’s vehicle) that was converted to a paramedic intercept vehicle in 2018 when one of our ambulances was taken out of service due to mechanical issues. It carries a full complement of advanced life-support equipment and responds to support our ambulance on calls in Sterling. It also responds with a paramedic when a neighboring community requests a paramedic intercept. This saves wear and tear on our full-size ambulances and gives us an additional paramedic response vehicle when one of our ambulances is out of service. The cost for this replacement is $55,000 and has been supported by the Finance Committee and Select Board.
Jaws of Life Replacement. This article has been on the Capital Plan in conjunction with the new Rescue replacement. It will replace Jaws of Life Equipment that range from 20 – 32 years old and is tethered with hydraulic hoses to hydraulic pumps. Much of this equipment is no longer serviceable due to its age. The new request is for battery powered tools which allow for more flexibility and accessibility during patient extrication. It also means we will not need an on-board generator, hydraulic pumps, or hydraulic reels on the new Rescue. The cost for this replacement is $50,000 and has been supported by the Finance Committee and Select Board.
Forestry 1/Pick-up Truck Replacement. This article will replace a 1999 Ford pick-up truck currently allocated as Forestry 1. It is utilized by the Fire Prevention Officer for day-to-day operations and has a skid-mounted forestry pump utilized during brush season. In the winter, it is also used as the plow vehicle to maintain the fire station bay and parking areas. During winter storms, it is used on medical calls to provide the ambulance emergent access to a patient’s unplowed driveway. The new vehicle will serve as the primary support vehicle for the department including fire prevention, incident, and training support. It will also carry the ice rescue sled during winter months and will be equipped with a plow package. The cost for this replacement is $48,500 and has been supported by the Finance Committee and Select Board.
Funding will be through a combination of Free Cash, Capital Fund, and borrowing. Thank you for your consideration of these articles.