LCRA awards $7,569 grant to Oakland Volunteer Fire Department

New equipment for emergency response vehicles will help department respond in safer, quicker manner

Nov. 29, 2022

Representatives from the Lower Colorado River Authority present a $7,569 grant to the Oakland Volunteer Fire Department for new emergency equipment. The grant is part of LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program. Pictured, from left to right, are: Kate Ramzinski, LCRA Regional Affairs representative; Mike Boom, fire chief; Odie Adams, first assistant fire chief; John Soos, firefighter; Margaret D. “Meg” Voelter, LCRA Board member; and Charles “Chuck” Rogers, Colorado County emergency management coordinator.
COLORADO COUNTY, Texas – The Oakland Volunteer Fire Department will purchase a variety of new emergency response equipment to assist firefighters in answering calls in remote areas, thanks to a $7,569 grant from the Lower Colorado River Authority.

The Community Development Partnership Program grant, along with $1,893 in matching funds from the recipient, will allow the department to equip its emergency response vehicles with new axes, flashlights, power tools, fire hoses and much more.

“One of the neatest things we’re getting is a set of what we call LZ flares,” Fire Chief Mike Boom said of new landing zone flares that will assist in patient transports via helicopters. The new flares add infrared capability and can be used in daylight, darkness and adverse weather.

The Oakland VFD, comprised of nine active volunteers, operates in a rural community where many of the calls are in remote areas that are hard for assisting departments to reach. Boom said the department’s goal is to outfit its response engines with as much as it can so firefighters have everything needed to handle whatever they encounter.

“Safety all around is our No. 1 priority,” Boom said. “And with the new equipment we won’t have to just make things work, we’ll actually have more of the tools necessary for the application, which will help our volunteers.”

The community grant is one of 46 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.

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

About LCRA
The Lower Colorado River Authority serves customers and communities throughout Texas by managing the lower Colorado River; generating and transmitting electric power; providing a clean, reliable water supply; and offering outdoor adventures at more than 40 parks along the Colorado River from the Texas Hill Country to the Gulf Coast. LCRA and its employees are committed to fulfilling our mission to enhance the quality of life of the Texans we serve through water stewardship, energy and community service. LCRA was created by the Texas Legislature in 1934 and receives no state appropriations. For more information, visit lcra.org.

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