The City of Whitewright is replacing several police and public works vehicles damaged or totaled during a severe storm that swept through earlier this spring.
Insurance proceeds are covering much of the cost.
During their July 9 meeting, the Whitewright City Council approved moving forward with the purchase of two replacement police vehicles and discussed financing options that are expected to be finalized at the Aug. 6 meeting.
Mayor Sarah Beth Owen said the city’s police fleet sustained extensive damage during the storm.
“We had multiple vehicles that received significant amounts of hail damage, some in-service and some not in-service units,” Owen said.
The department also lost a patrol vehicle in a traffic accident while an officer was responding during the storm. Owen said the officer was not at fault in the crash.
Altogether, the city lost three police vehicles — including two that were totaled by hail damage and one destroyed in the collision.
To replenish the fleet, the city is purchasing two police vehicles that previously served as demo models for a law enforcement equipment vendor.
“They’ve never been actually active police units,” Owen said. “They’re demo models that have been used to show agencies what the vehicles can look like.”
Because the vehicles were demonstration models rather than brand-new units, the city was able to purchase them at a reduced cost.
The total cost of the two police vehicles, including emergency equipment, decals and other upfitting needed to place them into service, is approximately $121,000.
Owen said the city expects insurance proceeds to cover roughly half of that amount, with the remaining balance to be financed. The city has already sought financing proposals and plans to present the best option to the council for approval at its next meeting.
Once purchased, the vehicles are expected to require about six weeks for final upfitting before entering service.
The city’s Public Works Department also experienced significant storm damage.
Three 2014 Ford F-150 pickup trucks were declared total losses following the hailstorm, although the department elected to keep one because it remained serviceable despite the damage.
Two additional vehicles sustained hail damage but required only repairs such as windshield replacement.
Insurance proceeds from the public works vehicles, along with remaining insurance funds from repairs to other city fire and EMS vehicles, were combined to purchase two replacement work trucks.
The city recently bought two 2023 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 pickups from Century Truck for just over $49,000 combined.
The trucks are already in service and are expected to receive city decals within the next week.
Each is equipped with enclosed utility-style bed covers that allow crews to securely store tools and equipment while working throughout the city.
Unlike the police vehicles, the public works purchases were paid entirely with available insurance proceeds and required no additional financing, Owen said.
According to Owen, replacing the damaged vehicles will help ensure police officers and public works crews continue to have reliable equipment while recovering from the widespread vehicle damage caused by this spring’s severe weather.
