Firefighters with the Vichy Volunteer Fire Protection Association will be a little safer thanks to grant funding from the Missouri Department of Conservation.
The department received $2,188 in matching funds, for a total of $4,336, which was spent on pagers, radios, helmets, coats and other gear.
In all, 169 rural fire departments received up to $3,000 to help with the purchase of personal protective gear and firefighting equipment. Total funding for this year's grant awards, which were given in June, July and August, is $373,585.
“During the last 28 years, nearly $5,904,429 has been distributed to rural fire departments to help them increase the safety of their firefighters and provide them with better firefighting equipment,” said Forestry Field Program Supervisor Bill Altman in a press release.
