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Gary County fire chief outlines grants, training and equipment purchases including AFG award for air packs
Summary
Fire Chief Gary Burgess reported on a recently awarded AFG grant for air packs, smaller Forestry and pipeline grants, a proposed local fire academy, a new brush truck, and a completed hazardous material commodity flow study covering seven counties.
Gary Burgess, Gary County emergency management director and county fire chief, briefed the commission on multiple grants, training plans and equipment acquisitions, including a major Assistance to Firefighters Grant and a local training academy.
"This is Fire Prevention Week. So people need to look at their smoke detectors," Burgess said as he opened his report. He described a program to distribute and install smoke detectors for rural homeowners through a state fire marshal program and county fire personnel.
Burgess said the county applied for and received an Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) worth about $711,000; he said FEMA would pay approximately $678,083 and that the award carries a roughly 5% local match, which Burgess estimated at about $25,000. The AFG was written to buy self-contained breathing apparatus — air packs — for Geary County, Grandview and the city of Milford; Burgess said the counties expect to receive roughly 55 air packs with each entity getting about 10 units.
He also reported a Volunteer Fire Assistance (VFA) grant from Kansas Forestry of $3,706 with a 50/50 match ($1,853) to buy forestry hose and protective equipment, and noted a $2,500 award from a pipeline association for gas/air monitors that carries no match.
Burgess described a planned local "fire academy" to train a cohort of new firefighters focused initially on brush and wildland firefighting. He said the academy would train 8–12 local recruits (including applicants from Grandview) ahead of the wildland season so multiple people are ready simultaneously rather than training individuals piecemeal.
On equipment, Burgess said the county purchased a flatbed brush unit and outfitted it locally for about $100,000; he said contracting that work through a manufacturer would have cost roughly $225,000, producing an estimated local saving of $125,000. He invited commissioners to inspect the vehicle outside the meeting room.
Burgess also told the commission a hazardous-materials commodity flow study that county staff contributed to is complete. The study covered seven counties (Geary, Pottawatomie, Wabaunsee, Lyon, Morris, Chase and an additional county listed in the study) and used about $7,900 in in‑kind staff time as a local match.
The chief closed by outlining outreach and training events, noting grant follow-up steps and asking the commission for support as staff arranges match funding and finalizes procurement steps for equipment purchases.
