SHELBY – The Shelby Fire Department upgraded added a new brush truck to its fleet this month.
Fire Chief Mike Thompson said during Shelby City Council on Monday the truck purchase has been two years in the making, first initiated by retired Chief Scott Hartman and continued through acting Chief Jeff Burrer’s term. It is now finally coming together.
“We were lucky enough to see the end product,” Thompson said. “And without the help of the townships, this wouldn’t have been possible.”
The brush truck, known as Brush 36, was purchased jointly by the city of Shelby as well as Jackson Township and Sharon Township. The total cost of the truck and the accompanying equipment was $43,158; the city of Shelby paid $17,675 and Jackson and Sharon Township each paid $12,741.
The city of Shelby will have ownership of the vehicle and is responsible for all future maintenance and insurance costs. Thompson said all Shelby Fire staff members had a part in the purchase of the brush truck, and by doing most of the work in-house saved the city and townships thousands of dollars.
“Captain Randy Washburn was the lead on this project and spent many of his own hours on this project,” Thompson said. “The valves on this truck are actually used, and when we purchased them they were rebuilt and were four different colors. Randy donated the sandblasting and repainted the valves to match, and mounted all the graphics on the vehicle with the aid of the firemen.”
The new brush truck is equipped with two hose rails, a fire extinguisher, 150 gallons of water, and other wild land firefighting tools. It will be used mainly for grass fires, which occur most often in the townships, and Thompson noted the truck went on its first run Tuesday.
“Our busy times are in March and April and during the fall harvest,” Thompson explained. “This year we had a wet spring and everything greened up, but it’s totally dependent on the weather and wind conditions.”
The truck will also be used for pressurized cleaning when needed, and to haul various trailers when responding to HAZMAT emergencies, water emergencies, or to pull a generator to different areas needing supplemented power.
With the addition of the new brush truck, the Shelby Fire Department can finally retire its 1963 Jeep, a Willy’s CJ-3B with 9,660 miles. The fate of the Jeep will be determined by Shelby City Council, though ideally Thompson would like to see the Jeep as part of a collector’s lot or a fire museum.
“The 1963 Jeep did not meet modern safety standards, and it was time we parted ways,” Thompson said. “It has served the city well, but there wasn’t a top for it and no heat, so in the winter it just sat. By having a pickup truck there are more things we can do with it, and it gives us a little more bang for our buck.”
The brush truck brings the Shelby Fire Department’s vehicle count to one front line fire engine, one 75-foot ladder truck, one auto accident engine for vehicle extrication, one 3,000-gallon tanker, one 18-foot rescue boat, and one additional pickup truck.
The department is also experiencing a few changes personnel-wise. Thompson is currently interviewing to fill a full-time firefighter position that has been vacant for two years since the retirement of Chief Hartman. The department also says farewell to volunteer firefighter Mike Ingram, who is retiring after 26 years of service.
It’s an adjustment, but after the successful collaboration for the purchase of the new brush truck, Thompson is confident about his department’s future.
“I just want to thank all of the individuals that made this project possible,” Thompson said. “There are far too many people who had some part of this project to name. This is a fine example of what can be done when we all pull together and think outside the box.”
