Area fire teams get a lifeline

By Owen Boss

Staff Writer

Small-town fire departments in nine Hampshire County communities were given a financial boost Tuesday when Gov. Deval Patrick announced the recipients of this year's Volunteer Fire Assistance Grants.

Volunteer fire departments in Cummington, Deerfield, Goshen, Hatfield, Leverett, South Hadley, Sunderland, Westhampton and Worthington were among the 54 communities statewide in line to receive the $83,150 distributed by the commonwealth's Department of Conservation and Recreation.

Firefighters in Sunderland were awarded $1,990 to purchase equipment needed to fight wildfires, and Fire Chief Robert Ahearn said the annual grant funding helped fill holes in the department's reduced budget.

"Equipment and supplies are harder and harder to buy when your budget gets cut," Ahearn said. "These kinds of grants are always a big help."

Fire officials in South Hadley were also planning to use the $735 they were awarded to get wildfire-related equipment.

"What we end up doing is buying equipment used to fight brush fires on state property," Fire Chief David Keefe said. "We have a lot of state forestry land in our district and every year we spend a lot of money fighting brush fires. This is the state's way of helping us pay to fight their fires and we are very, very grateful to get it."

The grants, which can be as high as $2,000, are matched two-to-one by each community. To qualify, a fire department must serve a community with a population of 10,000 or less and be made up of at least 80 percent call or volunteer firefighters.

In Cummington, firefighters were awarded $2,000 for flame-retardant foam; Deerfield received $1,806 for hard hats, goggles, "shrouds" to protect from radiant heat, gloves and coveralls; firefighters in Goshen were awarded $1,050 for flame-retardant foam; Hatfield's fire department received a $2,000 grant toward the purchase of flame-retardant foam and assorted hardware; Leverett received $300 for foam; Westhampton was awarded $2,000 for pumps and new hoses; and Worthington received $611 for foam.

For more information about the VFA program or to see a complete list of towns and funding amounts, please visit the Department of Conservation and Recreation's website: www.mass.gov/dcr.

Owen Boss can be reached at oboss@gazettenet.com