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The Hockessin Fire Company received a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Administration (FEMA) to install devices that will reduce diesel emissions on their emergcncy vehicles.
Rep. Mike Castle announced the
$55. 914 grant. which was part of the
Department of Homeland Security’s
Assistance to Firefighters Grant
Program. at a ceremony held at the
Hockessin Fire Company on December 21.
Assistant Fire Chief Drew Outten of the Hockessin Fire Company applied for the grant because he felt the emission-reducing devices, known as exhaust scrubbers, were vital to protecting the health of the firefighters and the various organizations that use the fire station’s engine bay.
Outten, of Hockessin. said the company’s engine bay doesn’t have a ventilation system, so all of the diesel exhaust gets trapped inside the bay when the engines start up. He said installing the scrubbers seemed like a perfect solution to the problem.
The exhaust scrubbers are being purchased from an Elmira. N.Y. based company called Ward Diesel.
John Meier, health and safety manager for Ward Diesel, said once a vehicle has the scrubbers installed, it eliminates virtually all of the diesel soot that is typically released when the vehicle is running.
Meier said the diesel soot, or particulates, are fine black particles
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that are known to cause cancer and that tend to get imbedded into lung tissue.
Meier, who is a volunteer firefighter near Elmira, N.Y., said his company’s exhaust scrubbers have been installed on his fire station’s vehicles. They have also been installed on emergency vehicles in many cities nationwide including Sacramento, Calif., Honolulu, 1-11. and San Antonio,’ TX.
Outten said, in addition to the firefighters who are in it on a regular basis, the engine bay is frequently used by Boy Scout and Girl Scout groups for various purposes. For example. the garage is the site of a Girl Scout troop’s cookie drop-off. Schools in the area also take field trips to Fire Company and are therefore exposed to the diesel emissions that linger in the building.
“We need to make sure we provide a healthy environment for them as well,” Outten said.
Outten said there was a great deal competition for the grant money. which was part of $650 million awarded nationally in fiscal year 2005 to help firefighters to improve the effectiveness of firefighting operations and firefighter health and safety programs.
Outten said he thinks the company was awarded the money because there was a genuine need for the equipment.
“It’s certainly something that’s needed within the company. and we don’t have other means to fund it right now,” Outten said, adding that the company
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is in the process of replacing an ambulance and one of their fire trucks.
Outten said he applied for the grant in the Spring, and it involved a great deal of research and preparation in order to provide FEMA with the information they needed. After submitting the initial application, Outten said FEMA contacted him with additional questions while the application was being reviewed.
“The people at FEMA were outstanding to work with and very helpful,” Outten said. “They were truly great.”
Outten said it will be another month before the company actually receives the grant money and the installation of the exhaust scrubbers will depend on Ward Diesel’s schedule. |
AFG Grant 
