ARLINGTON — Getchell firefighters were without power for three days during a heavy snowstorm last year after the station’s 1962 U.S. Army surplus generator broke down.
The federal government soon will keep the lights on at the fire station.
The fire department recently was awarded a $155,800 grant from the Department of Homeland Security to buy new equipment. The money is earmarked to solve a few problems, Fire Chief Travis Hots said. The department, which serves about 4,500 people, received two other federal grants in recent years and bought breathing apparatus and wildland fire equipment.
“We wouldn’t be able to make these improvements without the grant,” Hots said.
This time around, the department will use the money to keep the lights on, fumes out of the station and firefighters on the move.
Hots plans to buy a propane-powered generator to replace the old one. The grant also will pay for a new vehicle exhaust capture system. Currently when firefighters start up the fire engines and aid cars, the station fills with diesel fumes. To avoid the problem doors are left open for ventilation, but that’s not energy efficient. The new system will filter the exhaust out of the station and allow firefighters to keep the station doors closed.
Hots also plans to spend about $55,000 to buy new mobile computers and radio modems that will help firefighters communicate with emergency dispatchers without clogging the radio system. The new computers also will allow Hots, with a push of a button, to quickly notify volunteers at home that they need to respond to a fire or an emergency.
“It’s going to greatly improve the way we work,” he said.
Reporter Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463 or hefley@heraldnet.com.
@4. OT ByNumbers hedder:Grant money
The Getchell Fire Department received a $155,800 grant from the Department of Homeland Security. Here’s what the money will buy:
$40,000for propane-powered emergency generator
$60,000for a vehicle exhaust system to properly ventilate the station of vehicles’ diesel fumes
$55,000for computers and special radio modems that will allow communication with emergency dispatchers
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