LINCOLNVILLE — Engine 4, the long-awaited utility and attack truck for the Lincolnville Fire Dept., arrived with little fanfare to the Center fire station Jan. 28. Nonetheless, its quiet entrance into town is much appreciated, especially by Lincolnville Fire Chief Don Fullington III.

He oversees a fire department that responded to an above-average number of calls in 2020. Normally, the fire department handles 90 to 100 calls a year; by the end of 2020, it was up to 140 calls. 

The brand new E-1, built in New York state, is constructed on a 2020 International chassis. It is be named in honor of Neal Peabody, a longtime Lincolnville firefighter, who was instrumental in establishing the area’s former EMS service, Camden First Aid, and outfitting that service with extrication and access equipment.

Engine 4 cost $435,499, with a portion of its funding donated by the Lincolnville Community Foundation. The nonprofit has existed since the 1950s and its purpose is to help fund capital expenditures for the town’s fire department.

The new engine will be stationed at Lincolnville Center. It is primarily of stainless steel construction, and will carry the town’s extraction equipment, as well as fire attack equipment.

The truck was purchased from Greenwood Emergency Vehicles of North Attleboro, Massachusetts, and which has a Maine office in Brunswick. The stenciling on the truck was applied in Brunswick, and matches that lettering on other Lincolnville trucks.

The Lincolnville Fire Department has 28 dedicated call firefighters under the leadership of Chief Fullington. There are two stations, one at Lincolnville Beach and in Lincolnville Center, and four primary firefighting vehicles. 

In December, the town learned that that Engine 5, in service since 1998, had to be decommissioned after an inspection determined that it had developed two cracks, one in the frame rail, the other near a rear axle. The truck was immediately parked.

That left the fire department with Engine 1, an attack truck at the center station; Engine 2, a brush/water shuttle truck at the center station; and Tanker 3, a water tanker/ attack truck at center station.

To resolve the temporary shortfall, Engine 1 had been moved to the Beach Station, and Engine 2, which is now to be replaced by the new truck, will remain in service.

At the Dec. 28 meeting of the Select Board, Fullington suggested the town sell Engine 5, as opposed to spending at least $50,000 to fix it. Engine 5 was due to be replaced in seven years. 

Generally, the town replaces one of its engines every six or seven years, tucking away $25,000 a year for that purpose.

“The goal was to keep Engine 5 for another seven years and Engine 2 to leave sometime next year,” said Fullington. “The smart thing would be to get rid of Engine 5 and keep 2. We will be fine for the next six or seven years.”