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Fire chief moves pumper replacement into FY27 and flags lithium-ion battery incidents
Summary
Fire Chief Basset told the council he advanced a pumper replacement into FY27 to reduce maintenance-driven outages and preserve apparatus life; the department also reported three lithium-ion battery-related fires in the past year and described community education plans.
Fire Chief Basset told the Town Council he moved the replacement of a frontline pumper into FY27 after reviewing maintenance records and recurring major repairs. He said building a new pumper typically takes three to four years and that moving the purchase up will help the department return to a roughly 10—12 12-year replacement cycle.
Chief Basset said the department's fleet average age is about 17 years, maintenance and emergency-repair costs have risen, and a 30-year truck would be decommissioned when the new pumper arrives. He listed capital priorities including triband radio installations for first-due apparatus ($40,000 request), replacement thermal imaging cameras, automatic defibrillators and phased rescue-tool replacements.
On safety trends, Chief Basset described three lithium-ion battery-related incidents in the last year and a half (examples: a car booster/jump pack, a drill battery and a craft tool left charging) and said the department will include battery-safety messaging in the town newsletter to educate residents.
The chief also said tanker refurbishment is still under structural assessment and that placeholder funding (about $1 million) appears in the five-year plan pending vendor estimates. Council members and the chief discussed response-time gaps on the town's east side and the long-range vision for a possible second fire station (a concept being considered for the 2040 timeframe).
