Quick action saved city from loss of more trash trucks

John Howell
Posted 4/9/15

If it wasn’t for the rapid response of Warwick firefighters and a half dozen or more Department of Public Works employees who voluntarily responded, city trash and recycling collections could have …

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Quick action saved city from loss of more trash trucks

Posted

If it wasn’t for the rapid response of Warwick firefighters and a half dozen or more Department of Public Works employees who voluntarily responded, city trash and recycling collections could have become a major problem.

“The fire department was right there,” DPW director David Picozzi said Tuesday. “And employees, many of them mechanics, started showing up out of the blue and moving trucks.”

Had that not happened, Picozzi thinks the fire that destroyed five of the automated trucks Monday afternoon could have swept down the line of parked trucks, wiping out the city’s ability to render a vital service to residents. The loss of the five trucks should not interrupt sanitation and recycling collections.

As it was, the fire, which is thought to have been caused electrically, started in one truck and rapidly spread to vehicles parked next to it. The fire started about 4:15 after collections had been completed for the day, the trucks emptied and cleaned and their drivers gone for the day.

Picozzi said he was in his office when he noticed someone from fire alarm that is adjacent to public works on Sandy Lane rush to the yard gate that had been closed for the day. Picozzi stepped outside to see clouds of dense, black smoke billowing from one of the trucks with flames shooting from its side. Picozzi caught the scene on his cell phone video and no sooner does he start recording than a fire truck arrives.

But speed is not expected to be a factor in replacing the lost vehicles.

The department ordered a truck from Peterbilt almost five months ago and Picozzi expects it could be another month before it is delivered.

“Nothing is built here,” Picozzi said.

He explained that the cab/chassis is built in Mexico and shipped to Canada, where the body is added. The trucks cost $256,000.

Normally, the department operates with a fleet of 14 “everyday” trucks and six spares. One of the spares is out of commission because of a “blown motor,” meaning that following the fire the city has 14 operational vehicles. Picozzi said he would work to repair the motor and hopefully get the truck up and running again.

All of the trucks lost Monday and the three destroyed in a September fire were built by Sterling, a company that no longer exists. All were 2006 models with the exception of one that Picozzi thought was a year older.

The battery boxes were identified as the source of the September fire. Picozzi said as a result of that fire, the department made corrective adjustments to the trucks. He did not know what the cause of Monday’s fire was, but he believes it was electrical. As fiberglass is used in construction of the trucks, once a fire starts it burns hot and can spread easily. Picozzi said the series of explosions heard Monday afternoon came from the tires as they overheated and caught fire.

Ironically, Mayor Scott Avedisian said, a representative of the Rhode Island Interlocal Risk Management Trust that insures the trucks was close by when they caught fire. Apparently, the man’s wife called him to let him know what had just happened.

Soon after the fire Avedisian said he also received a call from Pawtucket Mayor Donald Grebien offering the use of two of that city’s garbage trucks. As they are not automated trucks like those used here, Avedisian doubts the city will take Grebien up on his offer, “but it was really nice.”

As happened when the trucks were lost in September, Avedisian expects the trust will take into account depreciation and mileage in arriving at payments. Claim payments for the three trucks lost in the fall ranged from $50,000 to $80,000, he said.

At Tuesday’s City Council meeting, acting chief of staff William DePasquale said replacing the trucks would likely increase the administration’s lease/purchase budget request from $1.2 million to $2 million.

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  • Notbornyesterday

    Why is it that the DPW loses five trucks and they are going to order new ones "right away", yet the fire department needs at a minimum 3-4 trucks replaced going on 4 years now and not one mention of replacing those trucks. We aren't even reserves from our own city..... The first three trucks at that fire had over 90 years of service combined.....

    Thursday, April 9, 2015 Report this

  • patientman

    Great the fire trucks got there quick. The article misses the important point. Why does Warwick have garbage trucks catching fire? It seems we're the only town I ever hear about losing trucks.

    Saturday, April 11, 2015 Report this