Volunteer fire departments in Claude and White Deer are the recipients of grants from the Texas A&M Forest Service’s Rural Volunteer Fire Department Assistance Program.
The Claude Volunteer Fire Department in Armstrong County received a $200,000 grant for the purchase of a new tender, a fire truck used to supply water to a scene.
The new tender is replacing an old water trailer that the department had for more than 20 years.
“This new truck is a 2016 Kenworth that has a 3,000-gallon tank with a 1,250 gallons-per-minute Hale pump, a 10-inch Newton dump valve and carries a portable tank that the water can be dumped into for other vehicles to draw from,” Claude VFD Chief Chris Bowles said. “The truck also carries multiple ladders and can act as a structure engine as well. We consider it a mutual aid asset.”
The White Deer Volunteer Fire Department in Carson County received a $20,000 grant for the purchase of a new slip-on unit for a previously awarded military truck conversion. The slip-on is replacing a unit which was donated to the department over 40 years ago. The new slip-on is designed as an initial-attack firefighting component used for wildland firefighting, structure and automobile fires.
The military truck they previously received was through the Department of Defense Firefighter Property Program, administered by Texas A&M Forest Service.
“We converted the military truck into a firefighting vehicle with this unit and made a walk way on each side with 2-inch nozzles mounted on both sides and a hose reel on the back,” White Deer Chief Troy Fulton said.
“The truck and the slip-on unit will be a great improvement,” said Fulton. “We will be able to maneuver this rough area and it is more dependable and will go anywhere it needs to go.”
Texas A&M Forest Service is committed to protecting lives and property through its various fire department assistance programs. For more information on programs offered by Texas A&M Forest Service, please visit http://texasfd.com.