Lyon County Fire District 5 is celebrating another grant and, as a result, another expansion of its capabilities during firefighting efforts.
District 5, or Hartford-Neosho Rapids, was selected for a Kansas Forest Service grant totaling over $9,000. The Volunteer Fire Assistance Grant mandates a 50-percent match, so the department contributed over $4,500 to meet that requirement.
Funding lets Hartford-Neosho Rapids upgrade or add equipment in several areas. Money will go towards 7 sets of dual-certified personal protective equipment that are rated for both wildland and technical rescues. This step also lets District 5 put less wear and tear on its structural PPE, which is more costly to replace. It also lets the department replace one dual-certified jacket that was damaged when department firefighters provided mutual aid in southwest Kansas this past spring. On top of that, it will let the department equipment all its brush trucks with drip torches — giving District 5 a chance to fight fire with fire in certain grass fire situations.
The grant announced Friday follows a better than $27,000 grant from the US Department of the Interior for the purchase of a new skid unit, giving the department a chance to use Class A foam in woody areas for the first time. The department is also getting almost $600,000 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency to buy a new tender/pumper and new self-contained breathing apparatus, or SCBA.
