Big grant buys new fire fighting equipment

La Conner Volunteer Fire Department is one beneficiary of a federal grant that funded the purchase of the department’s 15 new breathing apparatus for firefighters.

The air tanks allow firefighters to avoid smoke inhalation injuries while battling structure fires.

Anacortes Fire Department was the lead agency on the grant, which according to Anacortes Fire Chief Richard Curtis, is close to $1 million to pay for 90 units to equip firefighters in four departments, La Conner, Mt. Erie, Guemes Island and Anacortes.

“This is a big deal,” Curtis said, “and we’re excited to replace our apparatus with more modern equipment.”

Curtis said the grant from a FEMA assistance to firefighters program pays 90 percent of the cost of the new equipment, and the departments will pick up the remaining 10 percent.

Each unit costs around $2,000, he said. The grant also included money to buy a central compressor located in Anacortes to refill the units, Curtis said. But the Guemes department, which must rely on a ferry to the mainland, opted for a “Cascade system,” Curtis said, meaning they keep smaller air bottles on hand to refill when they have time to take a ferry trip.

La Conner Town Clerk Maria DeGoede said La Conner has set aside $20,000 for fire department equipment, but that the town’s portion of the bill for the new breathing apparatus is expected to be much less than that amount.

“We don’t have the bill yet,” DeGoede said.

La Conner Fire Chief Josh Morrison said he doesn’t yet know exactly what the town’s share will be, either.

But La Conner’s firefighters wasted no time in training on the new equipment. The firefighters gather every Wednesday evening for a training session, and at last week’s meeting, the new breathing units were at the center of the event.

This past year the La Conner Fire Department has been growing rapidly, with eight new firefighters added in recent months. Also, the fundraising arm of the department, the La Conner Firemen’s Association, purchased a newer model medical aid vehicle, which is now in use.

Also, the Town Council recently voted to buy out Fire District 13’s interest in the La Conner Fire Station to give the town’s firefighters more room. The town and fire district cooperated to build the station near the roundabout in 2004 and have co-owned it since.

The county Assessor’s Office has valued the building at $631,000, but the town and fire district will each obtain appraisals and then agree on a buy-out price. The town has a year to figure out how to fund the buyout.