The Texas A&M Forest Service approved $164 million in funding to award 558 fire trucks and 321 slip-on units to Texas volunteer fire departments through the Rural Volunteer Fire Department Assistance Program last week.
The following Hill County departments were awarded:
Whitney Fire and Rescue – $345,000 to be used for a water tender and slip-on unit
Aquilla Volunteer Fire Department – $345,000 to be used for a water tender and slip-on unit
City of Blum Fire and Rescue – $310,000 to be used for a large brush truck and slip-on unit
Lakeview Volunteer Fire Department – $45,000 to be used for a slip-on unit
White Bluff Volunteer Fire Department; $345,000 to be used for a water tender and slip-on unit
Abbott Volunteer Fire Department – $265,000 to be used for a large brush truck
Mount Calm Volunteer Fire Department – $300,000 to be used for a water tender
Bynum Volunteer Fire Department – $165,000 to be used for a small brush truck
The Rural Volunteer Fire Department Assistance Program was established by Texas House Bill 2604 in 2001 to provide grants to rural volunteer fire departments for essential firefighting equipment and training.
Since its onset, the program has awarded over $500 million in grants to Texas fire departments, including last week’s funding meeting.
The latest meeting marked the largest allocation of awards and the first phase in distributing over $192 million to Texas volunteer fire departments, following an appropriation approved by the legislature for departments that submitted funding requests on or before November 7 of last year.
The Lakelander 