Rocky Mount requests county's assistance to purchase new fire truck

ROCKY MOUNT — The Rocky Mount Town Council is requesting additional financial assistance from Franklin County for the purchase of a new fire truck.

It would service the town as well as surrounding county areas.

Following a closed session meeting at Monday’s council meeting, members agreed to formally request that the county reimburse the town for the acquisition of the new truck financed over a 20-year time frame. The cost annually for the county would be $200,000.

“In order to maintain the best service possible to our community, keep our firefighters safe, and keep insurance premiums low for homeowners and business owners, the town must replace some of the aging equipment currently in use,” Mayor C. Holland Perdue III wrote in a letter to county Board of Supervisors Chairman Tim Tatum. “At this time, the town is asking the county to reimburse the purchase of a new tower/ladder truck that will protect residents and businesses in Franklin County, including those in the Town of Rocky Mount, with a contribution of $200,000 annually for the next 20 years.”

The Rocky Mount Volunteer Fire Department is the largest and most active fire department in the county. The department responds to calls throughout the county, within the town limits and beyond. Nearly 60% of the calls the department responds to are outside the town.

The county currently provides $30,000 a year toward the Rocky Mount Volunteer Fire Department’s budget. Following an agreement in 2020, the county also agreed to reimburse the town for such expenses as electricity, gas, fuel, insurance and equipment in an amount proportional to the number of calls per quarter that take crews outside town limits. The county also agreed to pay stipends for running those calls.

Perdue said the request is in line with the county’s current practice given that it purchases all of the fire trucks county-served departments. The county purchases vehicles for volunteer departments around the county as part of an ongoing rotation.

“The county has to recognize that the town is part of the county and is not an independent entity,” Perdue said following the vote on Monday.

Perdue and Town Manager Robert Wood have had regular meetings with Tatum and County Administrator Chris Whitlow to discuss multiple issues including the Rocky Mount Fire Department since Perdue took office in January. He would like to see the need for a new fire truck discussed at an upcoming meeting.

“We look forward to working with the county,” Perdue said.