Faulty fans, broken truck get attention

By Mark Squibb | April 1, 2021

The Town of Paradise is having to fork out some unexpected cash to keep a town facility properly safe and maintained.

Council voted on March 16 to replace an exhaust fan at the town depot garage.

“The staff at the town hall reported smelling exhaust fumes or diesel on occasion,” said councilor Deborah Quilty. “Investigation determined that two of the three exhaust fans are not working.”

Quilty explained the Infrastructure and Engineering Committee met on March 3 to discuss the problem before bringing it to council.

She made a motion that council pay NL HVAC $12,934 plus HST, for a total cost of $14,874 to replace the three exhaust fans. That cost includes all materials and labor.

“I think this is money well spent,” said Patrick Martin. “Keeping our employees safe is a no-brainer.”

Later in the meeting, the town voted to repair a 2012 international truck used for snowclearing operations.

The truck had been recently brought to local dealership Harvey and Company Ltd., for diagnoses due to a lack of power.

“An assessment carried out by the local dealership identified several issues,” said councilor Alan English.

He called the truck an essential part of the town’s snow clearing operations, and said the town will keep in constant contact with the company during the repairs.

The repairs will cost $17,725 HST included, which will be taken from the town’s Vehicle Repairs and Maintenance Budget.

“Repairs have to be done, the equipment is expensive, and it can be expensive to repair sometimes, and that’s the long and short of it sometimes,” said Mayor Dan Bobbett.