Grants help fire departments add equipment
Published 12:00 am Tuesday, September 28, 2004
Firefighters face challenges nearly every day but two local departments will now be better armed to battle blazes.
The Upper Township Volunteer Fire Department in Lawrence County has received a trailer-mounted flood light system with generator and six self-contained breathing apparatus air bottles through the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR).
The fire equipment, with an original value of $18,000, was made available by the U.S. Forest Service's Federal Excess Personal Property program, which provides the equipment at no charge. "This program helps local fire officials obtain important fire-fighting equipment that their limited budgets might not otherwise permit," John Dorka, chief of the Division of Forestry, said in a written release. "The budget for a typical Ohio rural volunteer fire department is $35,000 per year, with some fire departments operating on $10,000 or less annually."
Items obtained through the federal program are provided to local fire departments under a loan agreement. When the equipment is no longer useable or desired, the fire department must return it to the ODNR Division of Forestry for disposal or reassignment.
Since July 1996, local fire departments in Ohio have acquired more than $7 million of equipment through the program, including fire engines, tanker trucks, pick-up trucks, vans, portable generators and pumps, compressors, hoses, nozzles, protective clothing and safety equipment.
The Proctorville Community Volunteer Fire and Rescue Department will receive a $3,000 Volunteer Fire Assistance (VFA) Grant for equipment upgrades and to assist with organizational and training costs.
The grant is administered by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources Division of Forestry to provide federal matching funds for fire companies in communities with populations of less than 10,000.
"I'm certainly proud and grateful for the work the Proctorville Fire and Rescue teams do to keep their community safe," Ohio Sen. Doug White said in a written release. "I'm pleased to announce this grant because it will allow them to move forward with additions and improvements that will enhance their capabilities and the services they are able to provide."
In 2004, 42 Ohio fire departments are receiving VFA grants. Since the program began in 1978, more than 900 Ohio fire departments have received assistance.