Cypress Lakes Volunteer Fire Department received a 2019 truck chassis with 4-
wheel-drive that will allow the department better accessibility to rural areas.
The new truck is equipped with a slip-on unit that has a 300-gallon water tank and foam capability for wildland,
structure or vehicle fire response. It is in service and has been used in response to a vehicle fire. The truck and
the slip-on unit were both purchased with cost share grants through the Rural Volunteer Fire Department
Assistance Program administered by Texas A&M Forest Service.
“We needed a light weight truck that could go off-road because a lot of our response area is remote and
undeveloped, accessible only by logging roads or areas near the river that often flood,” said Cypress Lakes VFD
Fire Chief Erskine Holcomb.
According to Holcomb, the department will be using the truck for fire response and to transport medical
personnel to areas not accessible by ambulances. The truck was designed to carry EMS personnel and a back
board if needed.
Cypress Lakes Volunteer Fire Department was created in 2002 and currently has 17 volunteer members on the
roster that help to fill the emergency responder role and are the first line of defense against disasters for their
area. Holcomb has been with the department since inception.
“My parents and others started the Cypress Lakes Volunteer Fire Department and I have been with the
department since inception,” said Holcomb. “So you see it isn’t what I do, it’s who I am.”
Texas A&M Forest Service is committed to protecting lives and property through the Rural Volunteer Fire
Department Assistance Program, a cost share program funded by Texas State Legislature and administered by
Texas A&M Forest Service. This program provides funding to rural Volunteer Fire Departments for the
acquisition of firefighting vehicles, fire and rescue equipment, protective clothing, dry-hydrants, computer
systems and firefighter training.
For more information on programs offered by Texas A&M Forest Service, please visit http://texasfd.com.