Approval for new fire engine is unanimous

The seven municipalities that make up the Central Fire and EMS District have voted unanimously to approve the purchase of a new fire truck, as confirmed at a district board meeting last Thursday.

Representatives from the cities of Abbotsford and Colby, the village of Dorchester and the townships of Holton, Hull, Mayville and Colby each indicated a “yes” vote from their respective councils and board at the March 18 meeting.

Board chairman Larry Oehmichen said he had already signed a check to the manufacturer, Pierce Pumper of Appleton, which qualified the district for an $8,000 pre-payment discount. The district’s monthly bill included a $453,293 payment for the new fire engine, which is expected to be completed in a year.

The district board voted in February to recommend the purchase of the Pierce truck, but because it is a major purchase, municipalities representing at least 66.6 percent of the district’s property value had to sign off on the decision.

Starting with approval by the Abbotsford city council on March 1, all of the councils and boards representing the district’s seven municipalities voted to approve the purchase.

Last week’s vote count was the culmination of the process to make the purchase official.

Other business

_ District chief Joe Mueller told the board that the district responded to 57 ambulance calls and three fire calls between Feb. 18 and March 18. The fires included one at a farm west of Dorchester, a house fire in Unity and a small fire in the hallway of a Colby apartment.

_ Mueller said the three fire stations are all doing fundraisers, including raffle ticket sales in Colby and Abbotsford and a fish fry at the Dorchester Fire Hall on March 26.

_ Mueller said the district will be doing some controlled grass burns this spring to prevent larger fires.