Kodiak borough weighs $70,919 off-road rescue vehicle for Womens Bay firefighters

The Kodiak Island Borough Assembly will consider spending $70,919 on a Polaris Ranger utility vehicle for the Womens Bay Fire Department at its 6:30 pm meeting Thursday. Borough staff recommend approving the purchase.

The volunteer department serves the Bells Flats and Russian Creek area outside the city of Kodiak.

"For years personnel have used personal ATVs/UTVs to reach off-road incidents," David Conrad, the department's chief officer, wrote to the assembly. He said those machines vary in how capable they are, what safety equipment they carry and whether they're available when needed.

The new vehicle would carry a fire and rescue unit with a rescue litter, a 60-gallon water tank and a pump, along with a winch and a snowplow. Besides structure fires, the department fights wildland fires along the road system under an agreement with the state Division of Forestry.

The department would pay for it out of its own savings, buying through a cooperative purchasing contract. Staff first sought the purchase in January but held off because of delivery times and the budget cycle. The Womens Bay Service Area Board, the department's elected advisory board, approved it Sept. 1 with a $100,000 cap. The dealer's price quote expires Oct. 17.

The chief of the neighboring Bayside Fire Department, Scott Ellis, supported the purchase, saying the two departments are working more closely together day to day.

The meeting airs on KMXT 100.1 FM and on YouTube.