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Richmond County OKs staff authority to pursue demo ambulance purchase amid failing fleet
Summary
After weeks of rising maintenance problems, the Board authorized emergency services staff to pursue financing and grant options for a demo ambulance priced about $357,000 and to continue negotiations on replacing aging frontline medic units.
Richmond County supervisors voted to let emergency services staff pursue financing and grant options to replace aging ambulances after repeated equipment failures left the county with limited frontline units.
Emergency services director (speaker 8) told the Board that of four licensed medic units two were currently in the shop and one 2009 unit had overheating and reliability problems. “We have 4. 4 licensed units,” the director said, outlining a fleet where some vehicles have topped 150,000–160,000 miles and require major repairs.
Staff described a demo vehicle available from Goodman that could be purchased for approximately $357,000 — roughly $100,000 less than a truck the county currently has on order — and explained a range of financing and grant-seeking options. “They will find grants that we qualify for — federal and state — their goal is to fund it 100%, but guaranteeing no fund,” the director told supervisors during the discussion.
Board members and staff weighed repair versus replacement options: replacing an air-conditioning system was estimated at roughly $12,000–$15,000 for the troubled vehicle, while full replacement prices for new ambulances have climbed into the high hundreds of thousands of dollars in recent years. Staff also described service and warranty problems with particular vendors and the difficulty of refurbishing discontinued chassis.
After a motion to grant staff authority to pursue the demo purchase and negotiate financing and grants, supervisors approved the request by voice vote and directed staff to report back on the outcome of a scheduled financing call later the day.
The action did not commit the county to a final purchase; staff said any acquisition would be subject to final review of financing terms, grant awards and budget timing. The Board also discussed using existing reserve funds and potential grant applications to offset any local capital outlay.
