Grinnell Fire Department loans ladder truck to Newton

Damage to the Newton Fire Department’s ladder truck prompted a neighboring fire station to loan a spare until repairs are finished.

To clear up any confusion that may occur while the Grinnell Fire Department truck is in town, Newton Fire Chief Jarrod Wellik assures citizens there is no reason to be alarmed if the truck is seen out on a call or on city streets.

“It is going to be here. They offered to let us borrow it until our ladder is fixed,” Wellik said.

NFD’s current ladder truck did not pass a recent inspection. The truck was deemed unsafe for use, so the NFD has to have it repaired before it can be back in service.

“We had an annual inspection that was completed on the ladder and there were some issues that were found that needed to be corrected,” Wellik said.

Wellik estimated it will take four to six weeks. The repairs will be completed in multiple locations. The truck will be worked on in Altoona but the ladder piece has to be shipped to St. John, Ind. The NFD will have to arrange the transportation to Indiana.

“They are expecting to know within the week here as to when it will go out there,” Wellik said.

Wellik highlighted the importance of the ladder truck to the department with the recent fire in Newton.

“The ladder is something that when you need it, you need it. A good example was the fire we had the other night at the Days Inn. We needed the ladder truck,” Wellik said.

Grinnell was able to loan its spare truck to the NFD because the department recently purchased a new ladder truck. Grinnell keeps the old one in reserve and in this instance.

“Luckily, we were able to keep our old truck as a backup. When Newton came into problems with theirs, it only made sense to work out something to help them out,” Grinnell Fire Chief Dan Sicard said.

The Grinnell truck will be on loan with the NFD until the Newton truck has had all the necessary repairs completed, making it safe to operate again.

Contact Dustin Teays at 641-792-3121 ext. 6533 or dteays@newtondailynews.com