Southgate Mayor Joseph Kuspa
Additional storage needed for ALS equipment
By SUE SUCHYTA
Sunday Times Newspapers
SOUTHGATE – The City Council approved a bid waiver to authorize the purchase of a needed rescue vehicle Sept. 1 to accommodate the extra storage space needed for Advanced Life Support equipment.
Fire Chief Marc Hatfield and Fire Marshal Jeff Moore researched three companies, and did an onsite visit of the lowest cost provider, Medix Specialty Vehicles of Elkhart, Ind.
The final cost, $136,924, is included in the city’s capital projects fund.
Hatfield said the vehicle it will replace has long been a workhorse of the Fire Department, responding to more than 4,000 incidents per year.
He said when the department upgraded its EMS license level to ALS in 2019, they needed to carry more equipment, for which the current vehicle was never intended.
“A Type 1 ambulance will allow the department to properly store the extra EMS equipment, and it will also allow for separate storage of fire turnout gear limiting exposure to carcinogens, and allow our firefighter paramedics a safe, clean environment to treat patients,” Hatfield said in an Aug. 24 memo to Mayor Joseph Kuspa.
Kuspa said Hatfield engaged in a five- to six-month search for a suitable vehicle, and looked at used vehicles that were still serviceable, but in the end, they found a new vehicle that will serve the city for many years.
“This was a very long process they were very committed to, and I think came out with the best result,” he said. “I appreciate council’s consideration and approval of this purchase.”
Hatfield said they are on a 300-day wait list to get the new vehicle due to the worldwide semiconductor, or microchip, shortage.