Malaspina Volunteer Fire Department is concerned about the costs of operating a generator to supply power to the fire hall in times of power outage.
At a recent Powell River Regional District’s committee of the whole meeting Mike Wall, manager of community services, said the generator had been purchased from Lasqueti Island. The generator is not operable there because there is no electrical power from BC Hydro on the island.
“We saw the opportunity to move that one because it is more suited, kilowatt-wise, for Malaspina,” Wall said. “It can be plugged in and when there is a power failure, it can be switched on.”
There has been some sticker shock, however, in getting the Cummins generator operating. Wall said an unforeseen factor, and “I was a little shocked at this,” is the need for a switch to protect back into the grid, costing $5,000.
Al Radke, the regional district’s chief administrative officer, said if the regional district commissioned the generator without the oversight of a Cummins technician, the warranty is null and void, which adds more cost to the investment.
Wall said there is also a fire clause, so if the generator starts a fire and it is not commissioned by Cummins, the fire department’s fire insurance would not be covered. “We have to use the Cummins person,” he said.
In all, the cost for completing the installation of the generator at the fire hall on Highway 101 is $10,000. The committee of the whole will recommend that the regional board support a budget amendment to reallocate the money from operations to capital to allow for the installation.
