Hauser’s refurbished truck not up to the task

The General just couldn’t muster up the right equipment to get the job done and his subordinate colonel wasn’t up to the task of clearing all the snow off Hauser’s streets either.

Hauser leaders thought they had hit the jackpot when they purchased a surplus military transport truck last year to convert to a snowplow.

They sent it out to a shop to be fixed and tricked out with black and yellow paint and a new plow. But when it came time to put it to work, the plow wouldn’t work and the truck’s two batteries kept draining down to nothing, said City Clerk Janet Crapo.

“It looked so great, but it’s been a disaster,” Crapo said.

To make matters worse, a smaller vehicle used to plow the town’s smaller roads lost its transmission – twice – putting it out of commission, too.

Of course it all happened at the most inopportune time, as about three feet of snow fell on the lakeside community of about 675 residents.

Now Hauser Mayor Don Werst has also become the town’s chief mechanic, working on “the General” himself to try to get it ready to hit the road.

Until the General is up and running, however, Hauser residents will continue to find ways to get around, said Westside Resort owner D.J. Nall.

“People help each other and do what they can,” she said.