Oneonta, Graysville fire departments receive federal grants

Fire departments in Oneonta and Graysville have received grants from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to help purchase new equipment, according to U.S. Rep. Gary Palmer's office.

Oneonta Fire and Rescue Service was awarded a grant worth $174,286 through the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program, according to a news release from Clifford Smith, a spokesman for Palmer.

Oneonta Fire and Rescue will use part of the grant to replace 20 self-contained breathing apparatus devices and buy two electrocardiogram monitors. The new SCBAs, which help firefighters breathe, will be much lighter than the ones the department currently uses.

"The SCBA's currently in use weigh approximately 30 pounds," Oneonta Fire Chief Arthur Willis said in a news release. "And many of them, by industry standards, are outdated. Replacing the existing SCBA's with newer, lighter equipment will decrease the weight by almost 50 percent, which in turn decreases the physical stress placed on the individual firefighter."

The Graysville Fire Department received a grant worth $23,334 through the same program, which will help replace aging supply hoses.

The departments applied for the grants and competed with other departments for money through a peer review process.