The DeKalb City Council voted unanimously Tuesday night to sell Fire Engine #4 to area resident Larry Euhas for $1,701.

Fire Engine #4, a 1983 model Sutphen, Deluge pumper unit, became a reserve engine after the purchase this year of the newly minted #1 in the late summer.

The #4 truck has been used by the fire department since the early ’80s.

Euhas was the sole bidder on the fire truck, despite the fact Assistant Fire Chief Reuben Nelson had placed advertisements soliciting bids on the city of DeKalb Web site and on the Illinois Municipal League Web site in August.

Advertisements also ran on FireHouse.com and with the University of Illinois Fire Service Institute.

According to the ad, #4 has a 1,500-gallon Hale pump that was certified in 2000, a 750-gallon tank, a Cummins NTC 300 engine, a 35-foot extension ladder, a 12-foot roof ladder and a 10-foot folding ladder.

Third Ward Ald. Steve Kapitan expressed concern that a fire engine could be worth so little. DeKalb Fire Chief Pete Polarek said that used fire trucks and other equipment have very little retail value on the second-hand market unless they have been rebuilt.

A review of online retail advertisements for used fire trucks and other equipment indicates that when pumpers with model years ranging from 1981 to 1985 have been rebuilt, they garner asking prices between $29,500 and $75,000.

At Ferrara Used Firetrucks, a 1984 Pierce pumper is selling for $65,500 and a 1984 Ford pumper is going for $29,500.

At the Firetec portal Usedfiretrucks.com, an Emergency One 1981 model Commercial Top-Mount Pumper has an asking price of $35,000, while a 1985 model Custom SM Pumper runs for $73,500.