BOWIE, Texas –– Texas A&M Forest Service recently awarded a $36,000 grant to Bowie Rural Volunteer Fire Department to go toward purchasing a new slip-on unit with a compressed air foam system.
“This new unit will help increase our capacity and give us an advantage in putting out grass fires,” Chairman J.K. Brite said. “It will give us faster fire knockdown as well as improve safety for our firefighters.”
The unit will be placed on the back of a Ford F450 truck with four-wheel drive and be used to cover its 175 square mile service district as well as offering mutual aid to other areas.
“We are up in north central Texas where there is a lot of tall grass to fuel fires,” Brite said. “We need light, fast trucks that can get to the scene quickly and get a head start on putting the fire out before it gets out of hand.”
Over 85 percent of fire departments in the state of Texas are either completely or mostly operated by volunteers. TFS passes approximately $12.8 million along to volunteer fire departments across the state every year, helping them purchase equipment to better protect lives and property.
“This grant program and training TFS offers is extremely beneficial in preparing the volunteers and giving them better knowledge for fighting fires,” Brite said.
To learn more about this program, visit http://texasfd.com.