WINNING NARRATIVE 2006



The XXX Fire Department serves a XXX community with a population of 2,100. XXX, XXX is located 100 miles southeast of Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota, and the fire district covers 105 square miles along the Mississippi River Valley which includes rural farm communities, small villages, historical properties, and rolling woodlands. We are asking for $223,250 from FEMA to purchase a fully equipped compliant pumper to replace an inadequate, dangerously unsafe non-compliant pumper.

Project Description and Budget:
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After a comprehensive risk assessment, the XXX Fire Department is seeking funds from FEMA to purchase a new NFPA 1901 compliant pumper. The XXX Fire Department does not have a pumper that is safe, reliable, effective or compliant with any standards. In fact, we have had the loss of water supply to fire lines while fire fighters have been inside a burning structure. Also, the vehicle brakes have failed and we were unable to provide fire suppression.

Our inability to provide fire suppression in our day to day operations drastically affects the safety of our firefighters and the ability to be an effective automatic mutual aid partner with other fire departments.

The new vehicle we plan to purchase would be equipped with a 3 man cab, diesel engine, automatic transmission, and a 1,250 gallon per minute pump. It will also have class A foam capabilities on board with a 1,500 gallon water tank. The 1,500 gallon tank would provide extra water supply in our rural community.

The XXX Fire Department has a strong comprehensive operator training program. We also have a well-built driver training program in place. In addition to our training programs, a large majority of our members have a commercial driver license with tanker endorsements. The personnel meet or exceed the national standards for drivers/operators (NFPA 1002, DOT).

We are asking to purchase a $235,000 pumper which includes necessary equipment to make the pumper NFPA 1901 compliant.

Total Project costs-----------$235,000.00 (includes equipment)
5% Match---------------------$11,750.00
Fed Share---------------------$223,250.00

Financial Need:
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The XXX Fire Department operates on a small budget to pay rising insurance, fuel, maintenance and utility costs. There is very little money left to pay for training and costs to repair, upgrade, or replace defective equipment.

The municipalities became over-extended on the replacement of our fire hall in 2004. The old fire hall was built in the fifties of concrete blocks which were deteriorating to the point where you could actually see inside the building. The roof was rotten and coming apart. Nor could it house all of our vehicles. The vehicles we left outside had to have the water removed to keep the pump from freezing.

We had to fabricate a makeshift structure out of steel to enclose all of our vehicles, and monthly departmental meetings were held by men standing between the trucks. The old hall did not have running water, no bathrooms, and lacked a water supply.

The building was needed for the fire department to survive. The worst happened..... The poly tank failed on the small tanker. The weak hydraulic brakes failed on the pumper. The transmission failed on the large tanker. And because of the lack of money available for these major repairs, the department had to take out a bank loan. The townships¿ budget were now running in the red.

We have a low median household income to support our tax base. Our families are strapped with low income and a high cost of living. They are unable to handle any additional tax burdens. This is why we need the FEMA grant.

Townships Budget
-$97,737 General Government
-$31,300 Fire Protection Services
-$33,060 Fire Department Building
-$22,294 Public Safety
-$557,452 Public Works
-$3,004 Health & Human Services
-$9,274 Culture & Recreational Education
-$5,736 Conservation & Development
-$45,398 Capital Outlay
-$20,454 Other Financing issues
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-$825,709 Total Budget

Our townships¿ total budget for all activities is $825,709.

The portion for the fire department is $31,300 annually. We are currently $4,421 over budget. We are a volunteer fire department with struggling townships trying to support us.

XXX Fire Department Annual Budget
-$1012 Electricity
-$934 Phone
-$5725 Wages (meetings, training, mileage, fire calls)
-$2345 Building heat
-$1822 Fuel (Trucks)
-$8054 Insurance
-$3524 Truck Repair & Maintenance
-$10450 Truck loan (poly tank, transmission, brake failure)
-$950 SCBA repairs and testing
-$725 Fire Safety Awareness

-$35,541 Total Budget

-$31,300 Operating Budget

-($4,241)

Cost/Benefit
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The XXX Fire Department needs a front line vehicle that works. We have no pumper. We have one truck out of five that is compliant or is not converted, our small tanker. Our ¿pumper¿ is a small tanker with a low volume pump. The ¿large tanker¿ is a converted sewer pumping truck. Our ¿rescue unit¿ is a converted bread truck. Our ¿brush truck¿ is a 1967 converted army jeep.

The 1986 pumper we need to replace has a small gas engine, weak brakes, manual transmission and non-effective pumping capabilities to protect our fire fighters while on a fire scene. The small gas engine limits our ability to climb our steep grades. Our immediate response area is located along the upper Mississippi River Valley. The area includes deep valleys and shear bluffs. The small engine hinders our ability to make rapid transportation to any fire scene and the brakes are unsafe to mitigate the hills.

The tank is rusting internally causing valves, nozzles, and the pump to fail while fire fighters are inside structures. The municipalities we serve are concerned about the capability of the pumper to support the fire fighters safely. We currently do not have this assurance with this non-compliant and unsafe pumper. If the pump fails we have no backup.

Our job as a fire department to protect our team and our communities are compromised with our current pumper. The lack of an adequate pumper forces us to more frequently call upon others for help. While we enjoy the benefits of mutual aid, we need a front line vehicle we can rely on to make interoperability work within our department. We have to assure the team entering the burning structure that they will have a guaranteed water supply.

The small pump (350gallons per minute) makes interoperability with neighboring departments difficult. Purchasing a new pumper will enable XXX Fire Department to fully contribute our services to the area we protect.


Statement of Effect
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The ability to protect our firefighters is decreasing daily. The number of fire calls is increasing. We never know if the pumper¿s brakes will fail, pump fails, emergency lights quit, nozzles plug, or engine doesn¿t start.

The XXX Fire Department is seeking a FEMA grant for a new pumper to bring us in compliance with all NFPA and OSHA standards. The diesel engine and automatic transmission will greatly reduce our response time. The larger engine will allow us to mitigate the steep bluffs and valleys. The automatic transmission will allow any of our members to easily drive the vehicle. With a larger pump and greater volume of water flow we can greatly assure the safety of our fire fighters. This new pumper will insure daily safe operations, increase efficiency, and effectively protect our members.

This grant will have a positive effect on our daily operation. It will fill in the gap our department has had for years with the lack of a compliant pumper.

Our department is very dedicated to protect the lives and property serving our growing community.

The funds that we are asking for will be used within one year of the award.

We are currently working on meeting the 2005/2006 NIMS requirements.

The XXX Fire Department appreciates your support and the opportunity this grant
program offers to our department.

Thank You For Your Consideration,
XXX Fire Department