The Augusta Chronicle
AUGUSTA, Ga. — An Augusta firefighter had a nearly $8,500 accident with a new aerial truck before it was even put into commission.
A lieutenant, whom the fire department declined to name, damaged the truck’s console shell — an area located at the top of the truck and the bottom of the aerial ladder — while driving it into the garage behind the fire administration building on Deans Bridge Road around 4:45 p.m. Dec. 4, said Augusta Fire Department Public Information Officer Dee Griffin.
The total repair costs have been estimated at $8,420, Griffin said today. It’s not the actual repair parts that will cost as much as all the extras, she said.
The estimate includes food, lodging and fuel for a repair technician who will travel from Virginia to Augusta to repair the truck.
The 2014 quint apparatus fire truck was part of a $8 million purchase that will include several new trucks and the refurbishment of an older one. The fire truck that was damaged was the first delivery and was scheduled to be sent to the Brown Road fire department. The remaining trucks are scheduled to be delivered through mid-2015.
Fire officials told The Chronicle last month after the truck’s arrival that it was especially important because it would be going to an area of the county that did not already have a permanent aerial truck.
Brown Road firefighters trained on the truck in late November in preparation for its arrival at the station. Griffin said the truck had not been put into use at the time of the crash because the department was waiting on some more equipment to be installed.
Immediately following the crash, the driver took a drug test and completed an incident report as part of the city’s protocol and procedures. Risk management was also notified of the incident.
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