From left, (front) Assistant Fire Chief John Pirkey, Chief Tom Bates, Ellen Moran, John Pouliot, Hunt Dowse, Bridges Smith, (back) Spencer Thompson, Capt. Tom Ball, Assistant Fire Chief Mark Thompson, Megan Bedard, Mike Matteson, Capt. Paul Towers, Eric Aldrich (in truck), Dave Lefebvre and Garrett Cassidy.
From left, (front) Assistant Fire Chief John Pirkey, Chief Tom Bates, Ellen Moran, John Pouliot, Hunt Dowse, Bridges Smith, (back) Spencer Thompson, Capt. Tom Ball, Assistant Fire Chief Mark Thompson, Megan Bedard, Mike Matteson, Capt. Paul Towers, Eric Aldrich (in truck), Dave Lefebvre and Garrett Cassidy. Credit: PHOTO BY MARYLOU CASSIDY / HANCOCK FIRE DEPARTMENT

After more than a decade of applying, the Hancock Fire Department has received a federal grant to replace its 38-year-old tanker.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency awarded nearly $429,000 to the department through the Assistance to Firefighters Grant. It’s part of a $3.7 million package distributed to fire departments across New Hampshire.

Hancock’s tanker truck was built in 1988 by the department, with the crew attaching the chassis, tank, pump and valves themselves. Since then, the tanker truck has been patched up over time, Fire Chief Tom Bates said.

It passes inspection every year, but since it was put together and worked on over the past three decades, each firefighter has to be trained on how the truck works and, more specifically, where the valves are for accessing water, given its unique structure.

The grant “helps the town in the long run to keep the costs down,” Bates said.

The department applied for the replacement grant back in 2010, and this year it finally came through. The decision-making process is not disclosed to applicants, but Bates said the tanker’s age or the narrative in the grant application may have swayed the decision.

Part of the grant requires each recipient to contribute a percentage of the cost, based on its population. The Hancock Fire Department will have to provide 5 percent of the funds, Bates said — about $21,450, which will be requested at the annual town meeting next March.

Hancock Fire Department seeks funding for new air packs and tanker

“Everything is in the early stages. We know the path we need to take,” Bates said. “We just need to get everything in place.”

The Hancock Fire Department is also working on fire station renovations, creating space for firefighters to safely store their gear, away from tankers and contaminants, to allay concerns about exposure to cancer-causing chemicals.

Hancock Fire Department seeks funds for $1.3M renovation project

That project, expected to total between $1.1 million and $1.3 million, will be covered in part by $600,000 in federal money. The rest will come from the Hancock Fire Department Association, the Fire Station Addition and Renovation Capital Reserve Fund, and donations from area businesses.

Bates said that work is proceeding, but didn’t provide a specific timeline for the project.

The fire department also applied for another FEMA grant for self-contained breathing apparatuses for the crew, but as of Monday, Bates said he hadn’t heard a decision. FEMA plans to announce the recipients of additional grants later this week.