The ladder truck is tied to the potential purchase of the Roanoke Rapids Theatre by Chicago businessman Lafayette Gatling.
The extension the fire department requested from the emergency equipment manufacturer expires in February and was requested to make sure money from the sale of the theater would be available to make the purchase. “It would not be fair for us to ask for another extension,” Corbet said. “It would not be fair for us to ask them not to sell it.”
With the extension deadline nearing, Corbet said he has been assured the theater deal with Gatling is still a go. If it doesn't go through the the fire department would look at other options for buying a badly needed ladder truck to replace the KME model which has had a history of problems since it was bought .
“We would have to look at a stop gap and try to find a used one to fit within our budget,” Corbet said. “We're not seriously looking at that plan.”
The KME continues to be used sparingly, the fire chief said, for calls such as the hospital, mill houses and any other high rise structure within the city. “We try hard not to use it.”
This week the fire department looked at a Pierce ladder truck and its main budget concern for next fiscal year is replacing the ailing ladder truck. “That will be our main thing. I don't see anything else on the horizon.”
The current truck has numerous problems, from a defective swivel which operates the ladder turntable to the cab coming off and most recently brake problems.
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We could remind the town not to count chickens before they are hatched, or put all their eggs in one basket. But the dumb clucks would never get the point.
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