GREENSTONE – Councillors have approved the purchase of four new trucks for the municipality’s fire department, at a cost of more than $2.5 million.
Council agreed to buying a tanker truck from Battleshield Industries for $512,000 in a unanimous vote Nov. 12.
That decision came two weeks after they passed a motion to buy three “mobile water supply fire apparatus” (pumper) trucks from Fort Garry Fire Trucks at a cost of more than $2 million.
Greenstone needs multiple new fire trucks as a “a large municipality of many communities,” Mayor Jamie McPherson said in an interview before the Nov. 12 meeting.
The four main communities in the large municipality – Beardmore, Longlac, Nakina and Geraldton – all have fire halls, he said.
“So we’re not a municipality of 4,500 who needs one of everything, we’re a municipality of 4,500 who needs four or five of everything.”
Allocation of the trucks will be decided “once we get all of the new trucks and we see where the demand is two years from now,” he said.
“It takes two years for the trucks to get built and delivered to us,” he added.
The municipality is “working forward through our Fire Master Plan to ensure that we have the vehicles that are needed when they’re needed, and we’ll put them where they’re needed,” he said.
A review of the Greenstone fire department in 2023 noted that all of the pumper truckers in its fleet is were close to reaching 20 years in front-line service, which is widely considered a “best practice” maximum.
A new pumper-tanker truck arrived earlier this year and is stationed at the Geraldton fire hall.
“We are happy to see that we can maintain critical services for our residents while giving our firefighters the best tools to continue their work in a fiscally responsible way,” said McPherson.
The purchasing decisions “really showcase the willingness and commitment of council to public safety and service reliability for the residents and visitors of Greenstone,” said Adam Lopatka, the municipality’s fire chief.
