Funding is headed to the Kittery Fire Department to address two of the department’s most pressing needs — more full-time firefighters and an expansion of the Gorges Road Fire Station, Seacoastonline.com reported.

A city official Monday night alerted councilors at the Town Council meeting to new estimated costs of expanding the station, a project approved last year, and the status of an application for a federal grant that would bolster the department’s active roster, the report said. 

The estimated price of expanding the Gorges Road Fire Station, a project approved by voters last year, is now $1.5 million, which is $650,000 more, according to the report. The design for the expansion project includes bays, office and bunk space for department and ambulance service members. 

Budget discussions among the Town Council this spring included mention of a potential federal grant to pay for an additional eight full-time firefighters, the report said.

The town applied for a Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant, funding administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, with the intent of using the potential funding to staff eight additional full-time firefighters, according to the report. 

If the town receives the grant, it would be on the hook to pay the firefighters’ wages and benefits after the three-year grant runs out, the report said.

The Town Council unanimously agreed to the tax rate change to support adding four full-time firefighters, the report said.

The community of Westville (Nova Scotia) has rallied to restore an important part of its history, Atlantic.CTVNews.com reported.

A 1948 GMC pumper, which cost $9,000 at the time, was the first fire truck purchased for Westville Fire and Rescue, the report said.

The truck was often in demand to fight fires across Pictou County during its 25 years of service, due to its 50-foot ladder and water capacity, according to the report.

The truck’s final call was in 1976.

After that, the truck was sold and the station lost track of it.

In 2019, a former Westville resident spotted a Kijiji ad for the unique truck, which was being sold in Ontario, the report said. The owners of the Acropole Pub and Grill in Westville bought the truck and it was brought back to be restored to its rightful place, the report said.

Besides some water damage, rust and dust, the truck is in fairly good condition, the report said.

The fire station hopes to have the truck pumping water by next year, with the full restoration complete for the department’s 150th anniversary in 2024, according to the report.

A new fire engine is slated for the Monelison Volunteer Fire Department in the next two years with funding recently secured from Amherst County officials, NewsAdvance.com reported.

The board of supervisors voted 3-0 on September 6 to appropriate $914,758 for the engine, which initially was scheduled for the fiscal year 2023-24 capital improvement plan, the report said. By waiting for the next fiscal year, the county faces effects of inflation on the purchase, according to a city official.

The Monelison department held a special meeting August 23, which resulted in a recommendation to the county’s Emergency Services Council for acceptance of a proposal to replace the fire truck, the report said. The council met the following day and voted the proposal was beneficial both logistically and financially should the funding be available, according to county documents.

By ordering prior to September 15, the quoted delivery time for the truck is 20-24 months for a fixed cost of $942,240 with no payment due until the time of acceptance and delivery, the report said.

To delay placing the order until July 2023, inflation is expected to add as much as $197,493 to the price, according to a report to the board states.

Fort Laramie National Historic Site completed a property transfer September 13 of a 2008 Ford Type 6 wildland fire engine to the Fort Laramie Rural Fire Protection District, LaramieLive.com reported. This property transfer is part of the Department of the Interior’s (DOI) Rural Fire Assistance Program (RFA).

Fort Laramie National Historic Site has been proactive over the years in supporting the community of Fort Laramie through a memorandum of understanding (MOU) signed in 2017, the report said. This agreement set the stage for sharing equipment between the park and the Fort Laramie Rural Fire Protection District as well as the Town of Fort Laramie Volunteer Fire Department.

A fire broke out and destroyed two homes in New Eagle after police said a man was burning weeds with a propane torch in his yard and went back inside. A neighbor who saw the fire on First Avenue alerted homeowner Randy Leach, who tried to put the fire out with a garden hose. One of the homes, which is used for storage and recreation and was unoccupied, burned to the ground.
- PUB DATE: 9/15/2022 12:00:00 AM - SOURCE: KDKA-TV CBS 2 Pittsburgh