Documents: East Fishkill Fire District lost more than $500k in taxpayer money in dispute over fire truck
Fire district officials provided documents indicating they lost more than $550,000 in their fight with the truck's manufacturer, Louisiana-based Ferrara Fire Apparatus, Inc.
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After receiving pressure from all angles, the East Fishkill Fire District has revealed how much taxpayer money it lost in a battle over a fire truck the district found to be defective.
Fire district officials provided documents indicating they lost more than $550,000 in their fight with the truck's manufacturer, Louisiana-based Ferrara Fire Apparatus, Inc.
The district paid Ferrara $1,002,351.00 for a 100-foot RMP fire truck in 2014, according to a bill of sale.
Soon after, firefighters began noticing defects, including a ladder that would collapse without warning.
The fire district sued Ferrara and eventually agreed in 2020 to sell the truck back but keep the price secret in accordance with a settlement agreement with Ferrara.
The district denied initial requests by Assembly Member AJ Beephan late last year for the transaction details. Then came additional pressure.
At Beephan's request, the New York State Committee on Open Government issued an opinion stating that information must be publicly disclosed.
The fire district's Facebook followers demanded in posts to see the figure.
The fire district relented, sharing documents showing the district sold the truck back to Ferrara and Ferrara's retail partner for $600,000, for a loss of about $400,000 in taxpayer funds.
"The clear goal was transparency," Beephan said in a Zoom interview Thursday. "And I'm thankful the department was able to disclose these numbers to the public."
The fire district also shared its attorney's ledger report, which states that about $157,000 was spent on legal counsel during the dispute with Ferrara.
The district said on social media that to avoid spending even more taxpayer dollars, it agreed to settle and take the loss.
"The sellback price, it is what it is," Beephan said. "I think the manufacturer definitely made out [better] in this scenario."
Taxpayers who have been following News 12's coverage of the million-dollar truck said Ferrara's business practices should be looked into.
"The manufacturer should probably do the right thing and give the taxpayers back their money," East Fishkill resident Tim Kramer said.
"We have a great fire department in East Fishkill," town resident Jose Lopez said. "It's a shame the community was ripped off, and something should definitely be done about it."
In the settlement agreement, Ferrara denies the fire district's claims that the truck was defective.
News 12 has placed several calls and sent several emails in recent weeks to Ferrara seeking responses to residents' complaints about the settlement.
Ferrara has not responded.
