Poplarville’s Board of Aldermen approved a motion to declare the repair of the Fire Department’s ladder truck as an emergency during Tuesday’s Board of Aldermen meeting.

The ladder truck was examined by Reliable Transmission who found the clutch inside the transmission was failing and recommended its replacement, Fire Chief Jonathan Head said.

The Board was given two options for the truck’s repair: rebuilding the transmission or ordering a remanufactured transmission from the part’s supplier, Head said.

The cost of rebuilding the transmission would be $10,000, while the cost of ordering a remanufactured transmission would be $14,000, said. The transmission has a sole supplier in the area who is authorized to supply the parts, Head said. Both options include a two-year warranty, Head said.

Declaring it an emergency meant that the provisions requiring competitive bidding would not apply, said city attorney Manya Creel Bryan. That motion would allow the Board to purchase a new transmission without going through the competitive bidding process.

“This is an emergency. If a fire breaks out this transmission is not going to move this truck,” Alderman Kevin Tillman said.

The Board passed a motion to pay for purchasing a rebuilt transmission for $10,000, which will cover both the cost of the transmission and the labor to replace it.