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Lower Colorado River Authority and Pedernales Electric Cooperative officials present a $23,764 grant to the Sandy Harbor Volunteer Fire Department for much-needed firefighting equipment. The grant is part of the LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program. At the presentation were PEC representative Karen Marshall (front, left), VFD vice president Linda Yarbrough, VFD secretary Stephanie Langseth, VFD treasurer Susan Gonzalez and VFD member Linda Crosby; and LCRA board member Ray Gill, VFD training coordinator Franklin Yarbrough and VFD fleet and facility manager Leon Melde. Courtesy photo
SANDY HARBOR — The Sandy Harbor Volunteer Fire Department will be able to purchase much-needed firefighting equipment thanks to a $23,764 community development grant from the Lower Colorado River Authority and the Pedernales Electric Cooperative.
The grant will enable the department to buy a pre-owned tank truck and pump as well as three dry hydrants to contribute to the safety and well-being of the community.
Dry hydrants are non-pressurized pipes permanently installed in a pond or a lake in areas that lack large water mains and pressurized fire hydrants. Dry hydrants provide firefighters with a way to replenish water supplies while battling a fire. The fire crew can refill its tanker truck from a dry hydrant, particularly when fighting fires in pastures and structures in rural areas.
“The Sandy Harbor fire department is thrilled to have been awarded the LCRA grant for the support of our three dry hydrants, pump and tank truck,” said Keith Woody, the VFD president. “This grant allows us to provide the resources necessary to provide the highest level of service possible and respond more quickly to any fire threat. LCRA has enabled our fire department to increase the safety of our community and give our residents higher confidence that their homes and land will be protected from potential disaster.”
Sandy Harbor is a 207-acre community on Sandy Creek, located two miles off Texas 71 in southeast Llano County. The small, rural community has about 165 property owners and about 95 homes. Currently, Sandy Harbor VFD has the ability to carry a maximum of 1,000 gallons of water to a fire. The addition of dry hydrants will greatly increase its ability to quickly respond to a fire threat.
The community grant is one of a number of grants recently awarded through LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program. The program provides economic development and community assistance grants to cities, counties, volunteer fire departments, regional development councils and other nonprofit organizations in LCRA’s electric and water service areas. The program is part of LCRA’s effort to give back to the communities it serves. Pedernales Electric Cooperative is one of LCRA’s wholesale electric customers and a partner in the grant program.
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