Six sealed bids of more than $1 million each for an emergency generator were received Monday, taking the City of Vicksburg a step closer to obtaining a backup power system for the water treatment plant.

The generator would mean a reserved power system for the plant on E.W. Haining Road during a power outage.

“Last night, if the storm would have been more severe and we lost power, that’s when the generator would come into play,” Public Works Director Bubba Rainer said Monday, a day after the area dodged the bullet of a severe winter weather storm. “In time of a power outage, they can be a lifesaver.”

Last year, the water treatment plant endured two minor power outages that each lasted up to an hour, but did not affect the integrity of the city’s drinking water, plant secretary Rosie Edwards said.

The generator, which will operate off natural gas, is being financed through a $914,650 grant the city received last year from the 2008 Community Development Block Grant Supplemental Disaster Recovery Funds. The grant requires no local match, but officials expect to apply for more money to cover the entire cost of the project.

The lowest bid of $1,110,000 was proposed by Electro-Mech Inc. of Ridgeland, and the highest, $1,408,980, was proposed by Dirt Works Inc. of Vicksburg.

An additional bid, of $1,277,440 by DECO of La. Inc., was rejected because it was received 15 minutes after the 9 a.m. deadline. Bids had been approved for advertisement on Nov. 25.

An engineering contract on the new generator was awarded to Allen & Hoshall of Jackson for $58,900.

The city currently has two generators, at City Hall and at the sewer plant on Rifle Range Road.

Also on Monday in the absence of Mayor Paul Winfield, who was said to be out of town on personal business, the Board of Mayor and Aldermen accepted three sealed bids for recreational supplies, two bids for pest control and two for towing.

Just Duett Sports and Sports Center, both of Vicksburg, submitted bids for 32 recreational line items and Cannon Sports of Sun Valley, Calif., submitted a bid for 12 of the 32 line items.

For pest control, Gary Jones Pest Control of Vicksburg bid $564.98 per month for all city locations and Paul Massey Pest Services, also of Vicksburg, bid $594 per month.

Bids for all city towing and towing for victims of crime were submitted by Bell Towing and Highway 27 Motors, both of Vicksburg.

The water treatment plant generator bids were: $1,173,750 from Killen Contractor of Brandon; $1,261,000 from Fountain Construction Co. of Jackson; $1,408,980 from Dirt Works Inc. of Vicksburg; $1,110,000 from Electro-Mech Inc. of Ridgeland; $1,222,383 from Webster Electric Co. of Meridian; and $1,387,880 from Morgan Contracting Inc. of Baker, Fla.