Tasmania Fire Service equipment has been stolen while crews were fighting a fire in Mowbray.

A standpipe and hose were stolen from Dover Street, Mowbray, while crews attended to a grass fire at about 2:30pm.

"The thefts of the standpipe and hose hindered fire crew's attempts to control the grass fire on a day of challenging conditions," police said.

A spokesperson from the crew based out of Rocherlea Fire Station said this was the second theft of similar equipment in the area in a fortnight.

A witness reported seeing three youths running from the area with the stolen equipment.

Police appealed to the public for help identifying the thieves and locating the equipment.

Any information could be passed onto Crimestoppers on 1800 333 000.

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Officials including U.S. Rep. Tom Reed, R-Corning, State Sen. Catharine M. Young, R-Olean, and Allegany County District II Legislator Dwight "Mike" Healy joined Friendship Fire Department personnel on Saturday to announce a Federal Emergency Management Agency grant for the department.

As part of FEMA's Assistance to Firefighters grant program, the Friendship Fire Department will receive $261,000, which will be used to help replace outdated gear and equipment.

Reed credited the efforts of Friendship's Board of Fire Commissioners, along with the Friendship Fire Department Inc., for coordinating the application.

With a total department tax levy of approximately $102,000, Reed said the award targeted toward real equipment will definitely make a difference.

"It will go a long way to help make sure these men and women called out 24/7, 365 days a year, have the resources and equipment to ensure they come home safe to their families," Reed said. "When we come together on common ground, we can achieve good things. That's what we did here today."

Young called the award "fantastic news" for the community.

"Our fire departments are so vital to our health and wellbeing for all the people in our communities and it's often so hard to get the resources necessary to deliver these fire services," she said. "My hat is off to those who worked so hard to make sure this happen."
Tom Cannon, chair of the Board of Fire Commissioners, said the department -- and others in the region -- have received some grants before.

"But nothing of this scale," he said. "This is a competitive grant and the real message is that by doing this, we won't have to increase our tax levy to the consumers here in the Friendship Fire District."

Ed Baumgardner, President of the Friendship Fire Department, Inc. and a member since 1981, played a vital role in the application process. Through research, he found a grant-writing firm called Grantgenies that had an 85 percent success rate in obtaining awards. He served as a point-person for gathering figures and information.

"They did what they were supposed to do, so now we're going to use them again, hoping for a grant that will replace a truck," Baumgardner said. The fire department has also contracted with the same firm to assist with required reporting and other administrative tasks surrounding the grant award.

Baumgardner said a new pumper/rescue, or utility truck, will cost approximately $497,000.

The last new truck Friendship Fire Department obtained was in 2006, and its oldest, purchased in the early 1990s, is having difficulties.

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Selectpersons will consider three options to repair frame corrosion on the 2006 Engine 3 firetruck when they meet.

Fire Rescue Chief Mike Booker gave the board a heads-up on the problem last fall.

The frame has "severe corrosion," according to Booker and Town Manager Shiloh LaFreniere.

Booker contacted Greenwood Emergency Vehicles in Massachusetts, a dealer of E-One firetrucks, to see if the company would cover the cost of repairing the frame.

"However, the frame corrosion is beyond the warranty," LaFreniere said.

Some warranty work for corrosion was done on the truck previously but more recently the Fire Rescue Department had to replace the fuel tank straps, brake lines, air dryer straps, exhaust, wiring, the primer and more.

There is no paint left on the frame and there is severe rust and corrosion, she said.

Department officers have reviewed three options and agree that the frame should be replaced because it is a major structural component and could become a huge safety concern if not fixed properly, Booker told selectpersons.

The truck manufacturer, E-One, would give the department frame replacement rails for free but the town would be responsible for the cost to remove the current frame and install a new one, he said. The cost is estimated at between $25,000 to $35,000 and would have to be done at its shop in North Attleboro, Mass.

That option is unanimously recommended by the officers in the department.

Another option is for North East Fire Apparatus in Auburn to remove the tank and the back half of the truck. It would use a needle-gun scrape-chisel on the frame and use an automotive type paint system on it, Booker wrote. The cost is between $12,000 and $15,000.

The third option from Cliff's Heavy Truck Repair in Windsor is to put the truck up on a lift and remove brackets, hoses and other parts to get at the frame. The frame would be sandblasted as much as possible. An epoxy-type paint system would be used to paint whatever can be reached. The cost is $15,000.

The board must approve using the department's Capital Account, which has about $365,000, to pay for the repairs.

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The Rogers Executive Airport has a new fire engine that cost $750,000. Rogers fire chief Tom Jenkins said the engine is going to make a big difference in fighting a potential aircraft fire.

"This apparatus is designed to pump nearly 2,000 gallons of water and foam and a special dry chemical agent to suppress fires that may result from aircraft fuel," Jenkins said.

He said even more important, the engine can pump water and foam while still being mobile. The engine can off-road, climb hills up to 30 degrees and get up to speeds of 75 mph.

"This is not your normal fire truck," Jenkins said. "This is a fire truck specifically designed for the types of emergencies that we can encounter at our airport here in Rogers."

Airport manager David Krutsch said the new engine is definitely an upgrade from their old equipment.

"Going from our 1990 model ARF unit to our new modern sophisticated unit represents a quantum leap in our capabilities," Krutsch said.

He said the airport sees around 120 flights a day and around 75,000 travelers a year. The engine will be housed at Station 3, located next to the control tower at Rogers Executive Airport.

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