Lancaster Fire & Rescue Fire Protection District Receives VFA Grant

By Ben Webster, Fire Program Supervisor, Missouri Dept. of Conservation

The Lancaster Fire & Rescue Fire Protection District recently received funding awarded for this year’s Volunteer Fire Assistance (VFA) Grants.

Equipment purchased by the grant include: One (1) Danko XL Skid Unit (300-gallon water/10-gallon foam). The Lancaster Fire District spent $18,400.00, and the Missouri department of Conservation 50/50 Match was $9,200.00.

One hundred and twenty-six (126) fire departments will receive reimbursement of up to $10,000, to assist with the purchase of personal protective equipment, communications equipment, and wildland/structural fire suppression equipment to help increase the fire departments capacity to suppress wildfires and structural fires safely and efficiently. The total funding awarded to Missouri fire departments through the matching funds grant program this year is $704,213.00.

Fire departments are required to match 50% of the funds which are provided by the Missouri Department of Conservation and the U.S. Forest Service, Volunteer Fire Assistance Program.

Throughout the last 30 years, over $10 million has been distributed to rural fire departments to help them increase the safety of their firefighters and provide them with much needed firefighting equipment.