BERLIN VFD AWARDED $120,000 GRANT FROM TEXAS A&M FOREST SERVICE
The Berlin – Mill Creek – Zionsville Volunteer Fire Department is one of 260 volunteer fire departments in the state to receive a portion of $15.7 million in grants awarded by the Texas A&M Forest Service.
The department will receive $120,000 to help with the purchase of a small brush truck.
Berlin Volunteer Fire Chief Mike McAnally says the addition of a new brush truck will help the department overcome the issues it has had in the past. Currently, about half of the department’s calls for service are grass/brush fires.
McAnally says the department hopes to make a dual purpose 4x4 to serve as a rescue truck due to increasing traffic on Highway 290, adding that the number of crash calls it responds to has more than doubled in the past few years.
The department first put in a grant request 10 years ago to replace its current brush truck, which is now 30 years old. The grant is funded at a 90-10 split, with the department funding a minimum of 10 percent of the cost for the truck. McAnally says as small brush trucks are starting around $175,000, fundraising will be needed to complete the project.
McAnally thanks the Texas A&M Forest Service for the opportunity to receive grant funding so the department can “better serve the citizens of Brenham, Washington County and those who travel through it.”
Departments in neighboring counties will also receive grants, including:
- Austin County – Industry VFD, $20,000
- Brazos County – Brazos County Precinct 4 VFD, $240,000
- Burleson County – Cooks Point VFD, $20,000
- Fayette County – Ledbetter VFD, $20,000; Muldoon VFD, $20,000
- Grimes County – Central Grimes County VFD, $20,000; Iola VFD, $10,000; Todd Mission VFD, $10,000; Shiro VFD, $1,200