JAY — Selectpersons voted Tuesday to issue bid requests for shingling the roof of the Jay Fire Station in Chisholm Village and replacing vinyl siding damaged in a hailstorm in spring.

The request also includes replacing the sewer pump station roof with shingles and installing vinyl siding.

The buildings are at 118 Main St.

Bids are due by 4 p.m. Nov. 2 at the Town Office.

Fire Rescue Chief Mike Booker said snow coming off the metal roof at the station is pushing in the north wall. It also lands in front of the main door.

A claim was filed with the insurance company for the two damaged roofs and siding was approved, Town Manager Shiloh LaFreniere said. The original insurance adjuster’s quotes were for a metal roof on the station.

“We can bid it out as a shingle roof instead but will just need to get the insurance approval of the amount prior to awarding the bid,” she said.

In other department business, Booker said the per diem shifts included in this year’s budget beginning July 1 are full, and the firetrucks and the two stations are clean.

During the past two woods fires the manpower part of the budget took a hit, he said.

“We had to have a Forest Service helicopter come in,” Booker said. Both occurred in August and were caused by lightning on Canton Mountain and the original Spruce Mountain in North Jay. There is another Spruce Mountain in Jay, across the Androscoggin River where the ski area is located.

Lt. Michael Luce is good with electronic gadgets, he said, and mentioned if they had a drone they could have found the fires. A drone with thermal imaging costs about $5,800.

Firefighters in Jay, who are members of Jay Fire Association, hold fundraisers to raise money for  needs. Luce decided he would go to businesses in town as a member of the association to see if he could get donations to buy a drone.

The first business he went to wrote a check for $5,800 to buy the drone, Booker said. He asked the Select Board if they would accept the donation of the drone from the association for the department.

The board approved it. Once the drone is purchased, recognition will be given to the donor, he said.

The association is also holding a raffle to try to raise money for a thermal imagining camera.

Selectpersons also approved officer stipends and eliminated some positions. Firefighters decided to add the assistant chief position back to the roster, and eliminate positions of safety officer, a lieutenant, a captain and two emergency medical services personnel.

The officers are taking on duties filled by those positions. It leaves Booker as chief and emergency management agency director, and handling emergency medical services duties.

The stipend amounts as a whole are $33,900, compared to the previous $36,250.

Still on duty are Deputy Chief Corey Leclerc, Assistant Chief Darren Roundy who was promoted from captain, Capt. Gary Wright, and Lts. Mike Luce and Lucien Gendron.

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