Three local volunteer fire departments have received Federal Emergency Management Agency grants for 2008 to help offset the cost of equipment needed to do their jobs.

The funds are part of the Assistance to Firefighters Grant that aids local fire departments and emergency medical service organizations in North Carolina.

As part of the grant, each fire department is required to put up a 5-percent match to the grant funds.

Piney Green Volunteer Fire Department is using its $185,000 grant to purchase a fire truck.

The new Class A Pumper Tanker will be replacing its 27-year-old counterpart.

"I'm getting rid of a daggone Model A Ford and I'm bringing in a brand new Cadillac," said Pete Triolo, chief at the Piney Green Volunteer Fire Department.

Triolo said the old truck is outdated and unsafe.

"The old apparatus was built under old standards with an open-cab design, did not have factory seatbelts, it's got severe corrosion issues because it came from up north and it's had huge maintenance problems," he said.

The new truck will have added impact and rollover protection and will "enhance the safety of the firefighters going to the scenes as well as enhance the pump capability," Triolo said.

The Piney Green department has applied for the FEMA grant numerous times, but this is the first year they have received it.

The Bear Creek Volunteer Fire Department is using its grant funds to purchase numerous pieces of equipment and training materials including hazardous materials identification equipment, metal storage racks, a Fit testing machine and pressure lifting bags, among other things.

The department has received $101,764 from FEMA. This is the seventh FEMA grant the department has applied for, and the fourth time the department has been awarded a grant.

"Grant money allows us to go ahead and maintain and actually purchase equipment that will ... make the actual job of these volunteers safer in the field," said Glenn Zurek, chief at the Bear Creek Volunteer Fire Department.

The hazardous materials identification equipment will allow the department to test materials on site rather than taking a sample and sending it in for testing. The metal storage racks will allow the firefighters to air dry their gear and prevent them from having to wear gear that is still wet, which is a safety hazard, Zurek said.

The Fit testing machine allows firefighters to check the actual fit of their facemasks and checks for air leaks. Zurek said his department will invite other departments in the county to use the machine to test their equipment as well.

"This grant is not only benefiting the Bear Creek residents, but it actually benefits the whole county and it benefits those departments that want to go ahead and get with us to use the equipment," he said.

In some instances, the new equipment at Bear Creek is the only equipment of its kind in the county and Zurek said he hopes his department will be called upon to help other departments if they are in need of the equipment.

The Verona Volunteer Fire Department plans to use its $56,207 grant to purchase 5,000 feet of fire hose, 18 air cylinders for breathing apparatuses, a water-flow monitor, 20 pagers, eight handheld radios and various other items.

"The FEMA grant will allow for the replacement of older, obsolete equipment and enhance firefighter safety that would have been financially impossible to do within our normal, yearly operating budget," said Wayne Thomas, chief of the Verona Volunteer Fire Department.

The department has applied for the grant seven times and has received money three times. Thomas said the department hired a grant writer to help in the process.

"That has helped us out tremendously," he said. "You have to know the right things to put in your application in order to receive the grant."

Both Zurek and Triolo agreed that grant funding is necessary to augment the amount of money distributed by the county to operate the volunteer departments.

"The biggest reason we receive grant funds is for the -  I hate to say - lack of funding, but the funding we receive from the county is not sufficient to go ahead and maintain some of the gear," Zurek said

Triolo said the grant funding will keep the department from going into debt.

"Due to the grossly inadequate funding of the volunteer fire service of Onslow County, grants and fundraising are the only ways we can survive and continue to provide the level of protection we do to the community," he said. "If it wasn't for the grants, our firefighters would not be at the level of proficiency and safety we are now."

Contact Jacksonville/Onslow government reporter Molly DeWitt at 910-219-8455 or mdewitt@freedomenc.com.