By Dawn De Busk

Staff Writer

CASCO — The Casco Fire and Rescue Department is scheduled to get a new tanker truck next spring as well as a much needed replacement for its 1987 ambulance.

Also, well before winter arrives, the shingles on the fire station roof will be replaced, and water and ice guards and double-drip gutters will be installed.

On Tuesday, Casco Fire Chief Jason Moen reported to the Casco Board of Selectmen some of the department purchases that were approved at the Town Meeting.

For the new ambulance vehicle, Moen supplied two quotes, and recommended going with the slightly higher, and “higher quality” unit from Sugarloaf Ambulance/Rescue Vehicles.

Sugarloaf’s cost is $167,000 compared to $163,000 from Ambulance and Coach Sales, out of Nashville, Tenn., Moen said.

Moen recommended accepting Sugarloaf’s offer because the fire department has been using the company for three years and has established a good rapport with company representatives. He cited an excellent working relationship with the company.

Despite the high mileage and mechanical woes of the ’87 ambulance, the department got a good trade-in, he said.

Additionally, if the town pays upfront for the chassis, Sugarloaf will give a $1,000 rebate.

“We changed the paint scheme to match our other trucks. Now that we are a consolidated department, we wanted the rescue unit to match the fire trucks,” he said.

There will be a turnaround of 270 days, or about nine months, before the ambulance is ready for the town.

The board voted to approve payment for the chassis. The vote was 3-0. Selectmen Mary Fernandes and Calvin Nutting were absent.

Also, the department is ordering a custom-made tanker truck from Midwest Fire Equipment & Repair Company.

“The chassis will be built in November or December. The delivery date for the tanker should be sometime in May 2016. (It’s) a little later than I expected, about six months,” Moen said.

The board also gave the department the authorization to spend $26,375, which was already approved at the Town Meeting, to replace the shingles on the fire station roof.

The bid by Austin & Sons Roofing & Siding, Inc. included 6 feet of ice and water shield plus commercial gutters to control water runoff and ridge vents, Moen said.

The bid included reshingling the roof over the fuel station, he said.

Selectman Grant Plummer made a motion to accept the bid, but add a double-drip edge to the specs.

“A double-drip edge is worth its weight in gold. It puts the water farther away from the building,” he said.