No Sandbagging Machine for the Township, Board Decides

The Plainfield Township Board has rejected a proposal to buy a sandbagging machine.

It turns out, people can pump sand into sacks just as fast as a mechanical device, Trustee Chuck Willard said at the Wednesday night board meeting.

"I just can't justify the expense, and I'm Mr. Sandbag,"  Willard said. "Twenty-five people can fill bags faster than the machine."

A very basic model sandbagging machine would cost $9,000, Willard said. To buy one that would fill bags much faster than volunteers, the price tag could be as high as $30,000.

And then there's the matter of storing it. With all its buildings full, the township would have to put up a new garage just to house the machine, Willard said.

Willard heads a committee that had been mulling over the idea of the machine to take the manpower out of filling sandbags.

"We (were) looking into the cost of a sandbag machine which would enable us to quickly fill sandbags in flooding emergencies so we can more quickly respond to the needs of township residents and save their homes from severe flooding," Township Supervisor John Argoudelis said.

In a serious flood, it takes about 1,800 sand bags to hold back the waters of the DuPage River. The township keeps about 1,000 filled bags on hand and another 4,000 empty bags. Sandbags cost $3 apiece, Willard said.

Flooding is the No. 1 worry of township residents, trustees said. The thought was a sandbag machine might benefit homeowners when rising water threatens their property.

Despite the board's decision, Argoudelis didn't rule out that the issue might be revisited.

"In three years it would pay for itself," he said. "Let's keep our option open."