Crime & Safety

Greenwich Fire Truck Engine Repairs To Cost About $35K

The truck was damaged as a fire crew raced to rescue 2 boys who fell through the ice of a Riverside pond.


Repairs to the fire truck engine that was destroyed when a Greenwich Fire Department crew raced to a Riverside pond where two boys had fallen through the ice last month, are expected to cost about $35,000.

According to Jay Domeseck, the town's fleet director, said Monday that mechanics at Atlantic Detroit, a truck repair company in upstate Middletown, are replacing the diesel motor to Engine 5, one of the trucks assigned to the Sound Beach fire station.

"They told me it was terminal ... it could not be salvaged," Domeseck said.

The engine damage occurred Jan. 23 when crews answered the call that a pair of boys fell through thin ice on a Willowmere Circle pond in the Riverside section of town. The engine crew was unaware there was a significant speed bump on Willowmere, a few yards from the pond. 

As the they drove over the speed bump, the truck bottomed out, shearing a bolt in the oil pan and ripping out a chunk of the Fiberglas oil pan, spewing engine oil as they continued down the road. The crew saw a warning light activated but continued on with their duties. As they prepared to rescue the boys — who ignored a nearby resident's plea to get off the ice — the truck shut down. 

"Do you save a couple kids or shut the truck down?" Domeseck said.

Domeseck said the repairs should be completed next week. "They said they had to replace the engine and luckily they had one available at the factory. A two-week turnaround is pretty good," Domeseck said.

He said some of the the repair should be covered by insurance.  



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