The Wautoma Area Fire Department received a grant from the Community Foundation of Wisconsin to purchase white helmets for the chief and assistant chiefs, the department said in a Facebook post recently.
“The purpose of the white helmet is to allow anyone on scene to quickly identify the officers in charge, which allows for a safe fireground,” the department said in the post.
The department also received a grant from the WE Energies Foundation Rewarding First Responders to purchase a four-gas meter. Prior to receiving this grant, the department did not have a way to identify what or how much gas was leaking.
“With the new meter we are able to identify four different gases: Oxygen, hydrogen sulfide, carbon monoxide and Lower Explosive Levels (LEL) of a variety of combustible gases,” the department said. “This is especially important when communicating with the gas company so they know what we are dealing with. It also provides a much safer environment for our firefighters.
