Turkey Creek Fire Chief Mickey Scott was front and center at the Monday, Oct. 10, meeting of the township’s fire board.

With the 2017 budget already passed on to the Syracuse Town Council, Scott’s monthly report was the only business of the evening.

In its only substantive vote of the evening, the board unanimously approved the purchase of a 2017 Chevrolet Tahoe to replace the current command vehicle, a 2004 Chevrolet Suburban.

The department acquired the Suburban in 2004 to replace the 1995 Jeep Cherokee it had been using for nearly a decade.

“We have obtained an estimate with the bid assistance that became available to our department on Sept. 2,” said Scott. The board allocated $39,840 from the 2016 equipment replacement budget for the purchase that had been approved by the Syracuse Town Council at its Sept. 20 meeting.

Scott estimated the new vehicle will arrive in about one month and it will take another month to install the tow package and otherwise outfit the vehicle for use.

The old vehicle will be traded in or sold, “whichever gives us more money,” according to Scott.

“This vehicle is utilized for various department business,” said Scott, “including a mobile command post, emergency responses to fire and EMS calls, towing the rescue boat and Sav-A-Life Trailer, attending classes and meetings and for day-to-day errands necessary for department business.”

Scott also reported:

• The department responded to 20 fire calls and 93 EMS calls in August.

• Department personnel attended 338 hours of training in August, including instruction in extrication procedures, search and rescue, field and brush fire operations, communicable diseases, cardiac arrest procedures and protocols, and recognizing and treating child and elder abuse and neglect.

• The 2016 ambulance purchased in late 2015 arrived Sept. 2 and has been placed into service. “The 2002 ambulance has been sold for $4,500, which is $1,500 above the estimated value of $3,000,” Scott said.

• Two 50-foot sections of fire hose failed a recent annual test and have been removed from service. “We will replace these two sections of fire hose at a later date,” said Scott. The board requested Scott to obtain estimates for such replacement.

• Nine new overhead garage doors and seven new openers have been installed on Fire Station 1. The board had approved $27,000 for the project, which came in $740.25 below budget.

• Instructors within the department provided a public CPR course Aug. 31 at Station 1. “Our CPR instructors will continue conducting classes in the future,” Scott said, urging anyone interested in signing up for the free class to call (574) 457-4100 or (574) 457-5507.

• The annual Fill-the-Boot Drive, held Sunday, Aug. 28, yielded $2,175.10 for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. “We would like to say thank you to the citizens of our community for their generous donations and support of our department during this event,” said Scott.

Scott also provided a written estimate of $80,954 for improvements to Station 1. The board requested a new estimate including painting the roof and the north side of the building.

The board will next meet at 6:45 p.m. Monday, Nov. 7, at Syracuse Town Hall.