Why is Indianola selling its aerial ladder fire truck? We have the answer!

Several decorahnews.com readers have e-mailed us with essentially the same question that Cliff asked: "No one has ever said why Indianola is selling a basically brand new truck only four years old. I and others are somewhat suspicious that Indianola would spend over a million dollars for a new truck, keep it four years and get rid of it. Do they know something about the truck that Decorah doesn't?"

Mr. Answer Person believes in getting answers straight from the source, so he contacted Indianola City Manager Ryan Waller.  He explained that both he and Indianola's Fire Chief have been hired within the past year, so they conducted a review of the equipment owned by Indianola's fire department.

Ryan tells Mr. Answer Person, "the aerial ladder truck...is too large for our community."  That's because the tallest buildings in Indianola are only 40 feet--there are no 8-story dormitories in Indianola, like there are in Decorah,

As for Indianola trying to put one over on Decorah, the aerial ladder fire truck has been certified annually following inspections.  Maintenance logs from the fire truck have been shared with the Decorah Fire Department.  There are also some warranties still in place on the fire truck. 

Here's Ryan Waller's summary: "The truck is a great piece of equipment, but just too large for our community's needs."