By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
It's hard to come by an old truck that still runs well. Tuesday afternoon, Barton County Commissioners and the Barton County Landfill donated a 1969 Chevy Firetruck to the Barton County Historical Society. The truck still runs and has fewer then 3,000 miles. Justin Engleman, first vice president at the Historical Society, said the truck will be given yet another life.
"We're excited to get the fire truck," he said. "It came from the city of Claflin, orginally. The landfill came to own it. The county said it's too nice to sell and maybe somebody tear it up, so we're going to love driving it in parades and having it here for people to see."
In September, the Barton County Commission approved the purchase of a 1996 Ford F350 Brush Fire Truck from the city of Wilson to be used at the landfill. The county considered putting the old Chevy truck in last week's surplus auction but Commission Chair Barb Esfeld said donating it just felt right.
"It's actually pretty exciting because it was donated to us and it's really an awesome truck," she said. "But it's so low that it can't fight fires out at the landfill. It's just not made for that. I think it's only appopriate that it not be sold at an auction and go to where people can come and see it."
Having a practical fire truck at the landfill is important because of sporadic fires caused by items like lithium batteries. The new brush truck will better allow landfill staff to maneuver around the facility without getting stuck. Along with parades, the Chevy will now be on display at the Barton County Historical Society, 85 U.S. Highway 281, just south of Great Bend.
