The Platteville (WI) Common Council is reviewing a proposal that would transfer ownership of a 3-acre property on West Lewis Street, the site of the O.E. Gray Early Learning Center, for $1, reports wglr.com. It could potentially be the site of a new fire station.

Reports say the city is considering the site for three uses, one of which is the construction of a new fire station, which would replace the existing facility.

Estimates presented to city leaders earlier this year determined that building a fire station at O.E. Gray would cost between $11 million and $13 million.

The building hasn’t undergone a market appraisal, and officials declined to estimate its monetary value.

Ten out of the 12 volunteer fire departments across Bertie County (NC) received the 2021 Volunteer Fire Department Fund Grant, totaling $198,368, reports DailyAdvance.com. The money will go toward helping the departments purchase necessary equipment.

To apply for the grant, the departments must price the equipment they want to purchase. Then they total up the final cost and submit the list.

Each fire department, excluding Windsor, must meet 25% of the grant; Windsor has to meet 50% of the grant.

Askewville officials say their department plans to purchase an equipment truck with a Cascade System.

A Blue Jay official says they plan to use the grant money for training equipment, a projector screen, and other minor equipment like a rake and shovel. They also plan to purchase truck equipment nozzles, pagers, flashlights, and turnout gear.

The Kelford Fire Department is planning to use the money to purchase a telescopic tool used for extraction, turnout gear, VHF radios, different tools for the trucks that can be used for forcible entry, and a chainsaw with chain chaps.

Merry Hill/Midway Fire Department plans to use the grant money to purchase a back-up generator for the station, to update their viper communication system, to buy some five-inch fire hoses. They will spend $10,000 and be able to put $40,000 worth of equipment in the building.

Powellsville Fire Department officials say that the department plans to use the money to purchase battery-operated Hearse tools, five pagers, turnout gear along with 10-20 five-gallon buckets of foam to dispose of kerosene and gasoline.

The Windsor Fire Department plans to use the grant money for breathing apparatuses, personal protective equipment, a thermal-imaging camera, and automated external defibrillator.

The remaining fire departments to receive a grant includes Colerain Fire Department $15,343; Lewiston Woodville Fire Department $8,210; Perrytown Fire Department $23,181; and Roxobol Fire Department $11,853.

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By Alan M. Petrillo

Necessity sometimes breeds ingenuity. That’s the case of Mike Matros, the inventor of the Mobile Extraction Unit® that brings decon of contaminated turnout gear to a fire scene, 24/7.

Matros, the president of RedLine First Responder Gear Cleaning, determined there was a need for onsite decon turnout gear cleaning, whether at a fire incident or at a fire station. “We know that firefighters’ skin is constantly exposed to chemicals and there is an elevated risk that combustion byproducts will be absorbed, regardless of personal protective equipment (PPE),” Matros says. “Often, the exposure is a result of the cross-transfer of contaminants from the PPE to the skin, which can increase the risk of cancer.”

Matros also is the founder of the Heroes Cup Foundation, a non-profit foundation that works toward cancer prevention, and has spent years working with researchers to identify the risks associated with firefighters wearing contaminated turnout gear.

In order to minimize firefighters’ exposure to carcinogens, Matros came up with the idea of developing a mobile cleaning system that could be brought to a fire scene or fire station and clean the turnout gear onsite.

Matros says he worked with Peterbilt, which provided engineering and design support for the Mobile Extraction Unit, built on a Peterbilt chassis and two-door cab with a 40-foot body that holds the mobile laundry that can decon all of a firefighter’s PPE. The Mobile Extraction Unit’s body has a 70-pound outer shell PPE gear extractor that’s designed to decontaminate while ensuring a maximum controlled environment and safety of the gear, he points out. The unit also has a 70-pound inner shell PPE gear extractor designed to decon the inner shells without breaking down the materials.

The Mobile Extraction Unit has a 110-pound tumble dryer for inner shells, commercial laundry machines that balance drying temperature, airflow pattern and usable cylinder space for optimal drying results, as well as outer shell drying cabinets that allow controlled ventilation for outer shell items, including helmets and boots, Matros says. In addition, the mobile laundry has a portable ultrasonic cleaning unit designed specifically for PPE, which can process multiple he