Volunteer Firefighter Grant Program Applications Open

Applications are now open for the state’s Volunteer Firefighter Equipment and Training Grant Program.

The Nameless Volunteer Fire Department were awarded some $20,000 last year. Chief Josh Locke said that grant was used to purchase brand-new turnout gear and a thermal imager.

“It’s a lifesaver for us because if not, we were using gear that was so old that it was getting to the point that it wasn’t safe to use,” Locke said. “And this gear allows us to go in and fight some hotter fires that we probably wouldn’t have been able to do as far as saving properties and lives.”

Locke said that they had been trying to raise money for that equipment for at least 10 years. He said that without the grant, they had enough money to purchase about two sets of gear a year if they were lucky.

Locke said that if volunteer fire departments are thinking of applying for the grant, they should go for it. The Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance and the State Fire Marshal’s Office said that there was some $1 million in grant funding available.

“You never know what you’re going to get,” Locked said. “We put in for I think it was $20,000 and was awarded that, thank goodness. And be honest when you turn your paperwork in because they do check them.”