Fire upgrade spurs bridge concerns

— A discussion about buying new fire engines for volunteer fire departments has led Benton County officials to study the county’s bridges to see if they can handle the increasing load of heavy vehicles.

“We’re looking at it,” County Judge Bob Clinard said of the bridge review. “We need to do due diligence.”

The need to examine the bridges came up during a recent meeting of the Quorum Court’s Committee of 13. The justices of the peace were discussing plans to buy a pair of firetrucks for the rural fire service and a question of how much the trucks will weigh - a loaded weight was put at 24 to 28 tons - prompted someone to ask whether the county’s bridges can safely handle the load.

Justice of the Peace DanDouglas said the question of bridge safety needs to be examined before the county embarks on a major program of buying larger firefighting equipment. The two trucks included in the 2013 budget carry a cost of about $450,000, and Douglas said the county needs to be sure that’s a good use of tax dollars.

“We have to ask ourselves, ‘Are we doing the right thing?’” Clinard said. “Is it safe? Is itsmart?”

Marshal Watson, emergency-services administrator, said the new vehicles weigh just under 24 tons when fully loaded. The 3,000-gallon tankers the county purchased in the past weigh about 22 tons, he said, as does the typical firetruck used by municipal fire departments.

A typical ambulance weighs about 3 tons, Watson said.

Arkansas, Pages 8 on 12/24/2012

Upcoming Events