A brand-new ambulance that Indian River Shores waited three years to get due to supply chain snags caught fire and burned beyond repair before the first patient could be transported in the vehicle.

Now town leaders have devised an innovative plan to upgrade its 13-year-old ambulance that was set to be replaced.

On May 25, the new ambulance, recently painted and lettered with the distinctive red-and-black Indian River Shores Public Safety markings, was taken to a specialized radio installation shop to get few finishing touches added, but an apparent electrical error caused the chassis to catch fire.

The totaled ambulance was ordered in June 2022 to replace a 2012 model ambulance which had seen better days. The town’s newer ambulance arrived in 2020 and was put in service during the pandemic.

“It’s never a pleasant thing when one of your new ambulances spontaneously combusts,” Mayor Brian Foley said, noting that the town still has two ambulances plus a mutual aid agreement with the county. “No need for the public to be alarmed. Your safety will be well looked-after and seamless.”

When asked if any components of the burned ambulance could be salvaged, Town Manager Jim Harpring said, “Nothing, based on fire, smoke and fire extinguisher damage. It was a total loss. Once the smoke got thick and fire extinguishers were used there’s really no remediating.”

The only good news is that the $332,000 ambulance was already fully insured at replacement value, Foley said.

“Right now we’re dealing with the insurance companies. We’ve pulled together all the information,” Public Safety Chief Tad Stone said, adding that Harpring – who is also an attorney and former Undersheriff who represented the Indian River County Sheriff’s Office in numerous insurance matters for decades – was taking the lead on insurance tasks.

Stone said the typical wait time for a new ambulance is 24 to 30 months right now, so he’s aiming to do a “re-chassis,” meaning the dealer would swap out the older cab and chassis attached to the ambulance box for a new cab and chassis. The ambulance box would also get an overhaul and re-wiring at that time.

While the 2012 model unit is out getting a new cab and chassis, the town hopes to borrow an ambulance from another agency – perhaps from Indian River County Fire-Rescue if the county has a spare in good working condition.

Vice Mayor Bob Auwaerter asked Stone at last week’s council if he could avoid taking vehicles back to that particular radio shop for service.

“We’ll try to have the radio installed at the factory when they do the re-chassis,” Stone said.

In the meantime, the town will take extremely good care of the two working ambulances in the current rotation at the fire station. “We are still fully functional with all needed equipment until we can get another ambulance,” Harpring said.

At the start of the 2024-25 fiscal year, the town increased its budget for maintenance of its fire and EMS fleet to $47,600 from $32,600 the previous year based upon projected actual expenditures, with a footnote in the budget explaining the 46 percent increase. “Ambulances and fire engines are older and increased costs in maintenance are expected,” it said.

“These high-use vehicles are subject to consistent operation in austere environments. Maintaining two rescue vehicles in an optimal state is imperative to providing the highest level of care for our residents,” the capital budget states.

If the town winds up saving some money on the re-chassis deal, there’s more big equipment on the needs list, with the Shores scheduled to purchase a $750,000 fire engine in 2026 and a $1.3 million fire ladder truck in 2027.

The town’s unique, triple-trained police, fire and paramedic public safety department accounts for $4.9 in operating expenditures in the town’s budget, or 83 percent of the town’s $7.8 total operating expenditures.