ASHLAND — Ashland City Council put an order in for a $340,000 ambulance last week, but officials don’t expect it to be delivered for years.
“This basically gets us in the lineup to get the truck three or four years from now,” Ashland Mayor Matt Miller said.
Fire chief Rick Anderson said the fire division previously used an eight-year replacement schedule for its fleet.
“But that was back when we could get (vehicles) in nine months from the date of order,” he said, adding the COVID pandemic put a halt to that. “Nobody has caught back up yet.
“It’s no fault of anyone, it’s just the supply chain.”
Zooming in on the delay
The delay is affecting emergency responders across the nation. The issue stems from a global halt to the manufacturing of microchips for modern cars, trucks and ambulances.
Automakers have said the supply chain issues surrounding chassis have been resolved. However, most entities are still “unable to place orders for chassis in the volume needed to reach pre-pandemic needs — much less account for a two-year backlog,” according to a Scripps News investigation.
The 2026 Ford ambulance ordered by council on April 2 is expected to replace one that is 13 years old.
The Ashland Fire Division currently has four ambulances in its fleet — three at central station downtown and one at Station 2.
Meanwhile, the fire department still awaits a new ladder truck. That $1.5 million order was placed in September 2022.
Anderson said he hopes the new ladder truck will arrive by first quarter of 2025.