Repair for Colfax ambulance could cost $10,000
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By LeAnn R. Ralph
COLFAX — It could come down to trying to prove negligence.
As of the Colfax Village Board’s December 13 meeting, one of the Colfax Rescue Squad’s two ambulances was in the shop.
The ambulance crew was out on a run last week, and the four-wheel drive went out on the ambulance, said Lynn Niggemann, village administrator-clerk-treasurer.
Don Knutson, director of the Colfax Rescue Squad, is now waiting to get a second opinion as to why the four-wheel drive went out, she said.
The next step, then, would be to go back to the shop that put on the last set of new tires, Niggemann said.
Repairing the four-wheel drive on the ambulance could cost $8,000 to $10,000. The ambulance with the four-wheel drive problem is the newest ambulance, she said.
The ambulance will have to be fixed because the rescue squad only has one ambulance now, Niggemann said.
Knutson is doing his best due diligence and is hoping for the best, but unless negligence can be proven, the village will have to pay for the repair, she said.
The initial report is that there were two different sized tires put on the ambulance, and the difference in the tire size could have caused the four-wheel drive to go out. The tires on the front of the ambulance and the tires on the back of ambulance were different sizes, Niggemann said.
Would the village have to take the tire installer to court to get the money? asked Gary Stene, village trustee.
At that point, the village would get the insurance company involved, and it would have to be proven to be negligence instead of an honest mistake, Niggemann said.
Repairing the ambulance might be a big bill, but there is no question is must be repaired, she said, adding that she was asking the village board to allow village staff to take the best option for repair rather than wait for the next village board meeting.
The Colfax Village Board unanimously approved a motion to move forward with the ambulance repair.