The Greenfield Fire Fighters’ Association is donating a side-by-side utility vehicle (UTV) to give firefighters better access to trail rescues and wildland operations.

Select Board members officially accepted the gift, valued at $11,500, at their meeting Thursday.

Deputy Fire Chief Jeff LaCourse said the majority of the funds for the vehicle came from the fire department’s fundraising efforts selling split firewood to campers at Greenfield State Park. The Greenfield Fire Department selected the UTV as its requested donation for the year from the department’s association, which does fundraising and supports the department.

“We did a lot of research and work to find the right unit – and with today’s supply chain issues, that’s not an easy job,” LaCourse said.

The model they have selected to purchase from Souhegan Valley Motorsports is a Kawasaki Mule, which is expected to be delivered this summer.

”There’s a lot of hiking trails in town. They’re not all passable by an off-road vehicle, but on Crotched Mountain, there’s an extensive trail system that is,” LaCourse said.

There has been at least one incident on those trails where firefighters used an off-road vehicle lent by the Crotched Mountain Rehabilitation Center to assist a hiker, LaCourse said.

“Being able to use that UTV saved us many miles of carrying a person out,” LaCourse said. “It takes a team of 20 or 30 people to carry someone a couple of miles, but with equipment like a UTV, you can do it with far fewer people, provided you can get close.”

That’s important for small, rural departments that are often made up of volunteers and rely on mutual aid from towns that also have volunteer departments.

LaCourse said there are also areas of the Greenfield State and Oak Park which would be accessible for a UTV. The equipment would also be used in other wildland operations aside from rescues, LaCourse said, including wildfires.

“We have plenty of those,” LaCourse said.

The UTV would be used to transport equipment and firefighters to affected areas. The UTV the department is looking to purchase can carry two people sitting side-by-side, and up to 915 pounds. It’s narrow enough to fit on most trails in the area that are accessible to UTVs.

The department expects to modify the vehicle, including adding lights and a rack to carry an injured person.

Ashley Saari can be reached at 603-924-7172, Ext. 244, or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on Twitter @AshleySaariMLT.