The Department of Public Safety has notified the first 48 volunteer fire departments of their approval for up to $15,000 in state equipment grants.

In October, DPS announced the first-ever Missouri Volunteer Fire Department Grant was available for small departments with annual operating budgets of $50,000 or less, for the purchase of firefighting equipment. There is a 5 percent local cash match, which means for equipment costing $15,789.47, the local match share would be $789.47 and the state share of 95 percent would be $15,000.

For the initial grant recipients, the top requested equipment includes radios, hoses and nozzles, firefighter turnout gear, extrication equipment, and self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA). Additional departments that have applied for the grant will receive notifications once their documentation is complete. Funding is still available for awards to additional small volunteer fire departments, which are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.

A total of $1,455,000 in state funding was made available for the program. The projected performance period for the grant runs until May 15, 2026. This funding opportunity will close when eligible applications have been received to fulfill the available funding.

Applications must be made through the Missouri Department of Public Safety online WebGrants System, which is available here. A complete list of grant recipients can be found below:

• Arbyrd Volunteer Fire Department
• Baring Volunteer Fire Department, Inc.
• Bellflower Volunteer Fire Protection District
• Benton Fire Department
• Bradleyville Rural Volunteer Fire Department
• Brandsville Fire Protection District
• Cedar Creek Fire Protection District
• Chamois Fire Protection District
• Clark County Fire Corporation
• Cloud 9 Ranch Volunteer Fire Department
• Cooter Volunteer Fire Department
• Curryville Fire Protection District
• Dadeville Rural Fire Protection District
• Downing Community Fire Association
• Eastern Douglas County Volunteer Fire Department
• Edina Fire Department
• Frankford Fire Department, City of
• Freeburg Community Fire Association
• Gainesville Volunteer Fire Department
• City of Gideon
• Gorin District Volunteer Fire Department
• Grandin Rural Volunteer Fire Department
• Highway K Volunteer Fire Department
• Hornersville Fire Department
• Kahoka Fire Department
• Knox City Volunteer Fire Department, Inc.
• Lake Road FF14/FF17 Volunteer Fire Department
• Liberty Township Fire Protection District
• Long Lane Volunteer Fire Department
• Maitland Volunteer Fire Department
• Martinsburg Area Fire Protection District
• Mayview Fire Protection District
• Meadville Community Fire Protection District
• Miller City Fire Department
• Montauk Rural Fire Department
• Morehouse Fire Rescue
• Osborn Fire Protection District
• Portageville Rural Fire Department
• Ripley County Fire Department
• Rosendale Fire Protection District
• Senath Fire Department
• Squires Volunteer Fire Department
• Thomasville Volunteer Fire Department
• Timber Community Fire Protection District
• Tri-C Volunteer Fire Department
• Urbana Rural Fire Department, Inc.
• Van Buren Volunteer Fire Department
• Whitewater Fire Protection District