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Board authorizes $756,590 purchase of two ambulances for Montvale Rescue Squad
Summary
Bedford County authorized purchase of two county‑owned Wheel Coach ambulances totaling $756,590; staff said delivery is expected in 18–24 months and cited chassis availability as a reason to buy complete units rather than mounting local boxes.
The Bedford County Board of Supervisors voted unanimously on Nov. 22 to authorize the purchase of two ambulances for use by volunteer rescue agencies, approving a resolution that staff said would make the ambulances county property and place them where needed in the future.
Chief Blankenship presented procurement work that compared three vendors and described why the county recommended Wheel Coach. He listed the individual unit prices included in the transcript as $380,000 and $295,000, and said a $4,000 discount for buying two units brings the combined price to $756,590. "...the total amount for the 2 will be $756,590," Chief Blankenship said.
Blankenship told the board that county staff had, in the past, purchased chassis and mounted boxes locally but that recent difficulties in sourcing chassis made purchasing completed ambulances the practical option to meet a reasonable delivery timeframe. He said the estimated delivery timeframe is 18–24 months.
A board member asked whether buying chassis and having local vendors mount boxes was considered. Blankenship replied the county has done that before but had experienced problems obtaining chassis recently, so purchasing finished ambulances ensured timelier delivery.
Mr. Cherry moved to approve the resolution (recorded in the transcript as R111825-02); the motion was seconded and the board recorded unanimous yes votes. The motion carried.
The resolution approves the purchase; the transcript indicates the ambulances will be county owned and can be reassigned among volunteer agencies as needed. Funding source for the purchase was not specified in the transcript.
