June 01--A $1 million fire hydrant grant proposal would bring 450 to 500 new fire hydrants to rural Muskogee County.
That's something that would benefit everyone in rural Muskogee County, said Keefeton Fire Chief Speck Plunkett.
"We are doing this for the public," Plunkett said. "We are helping the people."
Plunkett decided to write and submit a Federal Emergency Management Agency Assistance to Firefighters Grant proposal. The proposal was sent in early 2013 and is pending.
The primary goal of the Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) is to meet the firefighting and emergency response needs of fire departments and nonaffiliated emergency medical service organizations. Since 2001, AFG has helped firefighters and other first responders to obtain critically needed equipment, protective gear, emergency vehicles, training and other resources needed to protect the public and emergency personnel from fire and related hazards.
Plunkett said the grant proposal is a three-fold opportunity:
"One, it means extra fire hydrants; two, it will help the rural water districts to fix their lines; and three, it helps the public by reducing ISO rates."
According to the Oklahoma Insurance Commissioner's website, the Insurance Services Office (ISO) collects information on municipal fire protection efforts and assigns a ratings number. The lower the number, the lower the insurance rates are for residents.
If the grant was awarded to the Muskogee County rural fire departments, it would mean a necessary upgrade for the water districts in order to install the hydrants.
"The negative might be that they have to update their lines," Plunkett said. "These hydrants will be full-blown hydrants," meaning the water lines have to be 4-inch lines or larger.
"If they could replace them, that would be great, but we can't force them," Plunkett said. "The idea is, if we give them to the district they will put the fire hydrants in place."
The hydrants will cost an average of $2,500 to $3,000. It will be a bidding process or state contract to purchase them. The installation also will be under a bidding process, Plunkett said.
Regardless of who installs the hydrants, it will be the water district that will inspect them.
Henry Rhodes, Rural Water District #5 operator, said that although he could use more hydrants in his area, they would be limited as to where they could put them.
"We are looking to put them everywhere we have the bigger lines," Rhodes said.
Rhodes also said it is usually the districts who are paid to install the hydrants.
"It would be cheaper in the long run if they paid us to put them in," Rhodes said.
Plunkett said he would like to keep the money local.
The fire hydrant grant is a 90-10 matching grant. The Muskogee County Fire Fighter's Association/tax board agreed to pay the 10 percent, Plunkett said.
If the grant is awarded, the next step would be to decide where the new fire hydrants would be installed.
"We'll cross that bridge when we get there," Plunkett said.
Reach E.I. Hillin at (918) 684-2926 or [email protected].
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