BEC, LCRA Award $24,999 Grant to Center Point VFD

Photo courtesy of LCRA. Pictured, from left to right, are: Lauren Salazar, BEC marketing supervisor; Sammy Burney, Center Point VFD assistant fire chief; and Steve Dyer, LCRA Regional Affairs representative.

KERR COUNTY, Texas – The Center Point Volunteer Fire Department will purchase new firefighting and emergency response equipment, thanks to a $24,999 grant from the Lower Colorado River Authority and Bandera Electric Cooperative.

The Community Development Partnership Program grant, along with $6,499 in matching funds, will allow Center Point VFD to purchase a thermal imaging camera to help firefighters see more clearly in smoky conditions and locate hot spots, and a smoke evacuation fan to quickly clear rooms of smoke. The department also will purchase a gas leak detector and portable fire monitors.

“We respond to different types of emergencies that range from wildland fires to vertical rescue,” said Charles Holt, Center Point VFD fire chief. “The new equipment will help us fight fires more efficiently and get to people quicker.”

The equipment also will be used to respond to emergencies in the surrounding areas. Holt said the department partners with other fire departments to provide mutual aid.

“We have a large service area that covers 112 square miles in Kerr County,” Holt said. “Our communities are tightknit, so we rely on each other for support. It’s hard to fight fires efficiently and safely without the proper emergency equipment. This grant will help us better serve our communities.”

The Center Point VFD serves about 4,700 people and offers mutual aid to Comfort, Kerrville, Ingram, Bandera, Fredericksburg, Mountain Home and Medina.

The community grant is one of 32 grants awarded recently through LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program, which helps volunteer fire departments, local governments, emergency responders and nonprofit organizations fund capital improvement projects in LCRA’s wholesale electric, water and transmission service areas. The program is part of LCRA’s effort to give back to the communities it serves. Bandera Electric Cooperative is one of LCRA’s wholesale electric customers and is a partner in the grant program.

Applications for the next round of grants will be accepted in January. More information is available at lcra.org/cdpp.

Posted Tuesday, November 16, 2021