Rock Creek fire district receives new fire engine

Feb. 4—KIMBERLY — The Rock Creek Fire Protection District recently added a new vehicle to its fleet.

Members of the district drove to Hill Air Force Base near Ogden, Utah, last week to pick up a used ladder truck that the district has been after for the past two years.

The district was able to receive the fire engine for free through a Department of Defense program that sends surplus military equipment to the Idaho Department of Lands, which then sends it to local fire departments.

Rock Creek fire chief Aaron Zent said without this program, the district wouldn't have been able to acquire a truck like this, which normally costs more than $1 million new.

"That price tag wasn't really an option for the district," Zent said.

The large truck comes with a 105-foot ladder, which is a first for the district. Zent said this will help the department when performing rescues or battling structure fires.

With all of the new construction taking place in the district and the building out of taller homes, the department needed an engine with a ladder that would allow firefighters to get on top of fires.

"It offers a lot of opportunities that we haven't had and a lot of safety measures that we haven't been able to take advantage of," Zent said.

The truck was built in 2003 but Zent said the department should be able to get another 20 years of use out of it. Before the engine can be put to use, the district needs to outfit the vehicle with gear and train firefighters on how to operate the vehicle.

"There's quite a bit of training and it'll take time to stock the truck," Zent said. "The goal is to have it operational by July 1."

On top of helping the district respond to structure fires and perform rescues, the fire truck will improve the district's Insurance Services Office rating, which measures a department's ability to respond to fires and takes types of equipment into account. Zent said an improvement in this score reduces insurance premiums for homeowners in the district.

This isn't the first time the district has received surplus equipment from the Department of Defense, but it's the first time it has acquired a vehicle through this program. Normally, capital purchases like this are funded by the compensation the district receives for battling wildfires in the state or other areas of the country.

This funding makes up a small portion of the district's budget and fluctuates depending on the season. For example, in 2019 the district sent firefighters to assist in only two events, while last year it sent firefighters to more than 30.

"It's very inconsistent," Zent said. "And because it's inconsistent, I can't really depend on it as revenue for the district."

Nearly 98% of the district's budget comes from property taxes. And this funding, while more consistent, is short of what the district needs, assistant fire chief Greg Vawser said.

Over the last seven years, the number of calls the district responds to has nearly doubled due to new construction and population growth. The problem is that the district's property tax revenue hasn't increased at the same rate. This is partly due to caps on budget growth that are coded in state law.

"We're dealing with more call volume and more workload but the same amount of money," Vawser said.

The district has gone out for numerous permanent levy increases — which required a supermajority or two-thirds approval — in years past to raise more funds, but these have failed.

However in November, voters approved a supplement levy for the district — which is a temporary measure only requiring a simple 50% majority to pass — that'll bring in an additional roughly $600,000 a year for the next two years.

This extra funding wasn't used on this new fire truck and won't be spent on future capital projects either, Zent said. Instead, the money is needed to keep the district staffed at its current level and to take care of some maintenance issues that have been neglected, such as purchasing personal protective equipment for firefighters.

Because this funding is temporary, Zent said the district won't use it to hire additional firefighters even though it's needed. The only way the district could bring on more people is through a permanent increase in funding.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to clarify the program through which the department received the truck.

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