Fire District 3 to buy new water tender

Clark County Fire District 3 will be using a FEMA grant to replace an aging water tender with a leaking water tank.

The district will provide $29,700 of its own funds to match the $267,300 grant, according to a bulletin.

The old tender, a 1982 truck with a 4,000 gallon gasoline tank that was retrofitted to be used for water, will probably be replaced by a new truck with a 3,000 gallon tank, said Chief Steve Wrightson.

The smaller tank should give the tender better maneuverability, especially when going up hills, Wrightson said.

The old tender will be offered as surplus and sold to the highest bidder.

Tenders are important in the district, which serves the area around Hockinson, Brush Prairie, Venersborg and, Battle Ground Lake. The district also uses its tenders to assist other agencies in the area in fighting fires in rural areas, Wrightson said.

“They’re critical-use, but you don’t see them on every fire,” he said.

The district will go out to bid for the new tender and hopes to have the new rig by the end of the year, if not sooner.