Municipal Administrator lawyer Elisa Evangelista-Lapiña in a statement said they requested the firetruck from the Office of the President through Senator Bong Go.
"Dako kini na tabang sa atong lungsod labi na atong ginapakusgan ang operasyon sa atong BFP-Santo Tomas,” she said.
Evangelista-Lapiña said the administration of Mayor Ernesto Evangelista wants to modernize the operations of the BFP-Santo Tomas by being more capable and effective in ensuring the safety of the Tomasino community.
With the brand new firetruck, the BFP-Santo Tomas will now be able to operate a brand-new truck equipped with better and updated firefighting setup.
She said that BFP-Santo Tomas now more than ever needs to continue to protect and serve Tomasinos against fire and other calamities.
Aside from responding to fire, and calamities, the fire trucks may also be tapped to deliver potable water to affected barangays such as in the case of Barangay Tulalian after the village was hit by a water-borne disease in 2021.
Evangelista-Lapiña said the mayor has already instructed the BFP-Santo Tomas to provide intensive training, including the operations of a modern fire truck and equipment to further improve firefighting activities.
The Santo Tomas government's fire fighting capabilities will receive a boost with the addition of the brand new Isuzu firetruck to its existing fleet.
Meanwhile, Evangelista-Lapiña said as the Municipal Administrator, she's inclined to implement reforms, emphasizing the need to ensure that fire trucks should be of superior quality.
In 2017, the previous administration purchased a “second hand” or reconditioned firetruck at a hefty price. But the costs of maintaining it took a heavy tool on the part of the municipal government as more parts need to be replaced, and to be repaired to make it operational.
Evangelista-Lapiña said the “second hand” fire truck was faced with other procurement issue: the firetruck cannot be transferred to the Santo Tomas LGU because it is “green plate.”
“Nahimo na siyang burden sa BFP-Santo Tomas kay dauton na gani di pa jud nato mapa-repair og insakto through the use of public fund kay naka ‘green plate’ pa until now. Mao na siya ang problema until now,” she said.