Cuba Fire Rescue received notice of funding from the New Mexico Energy, Minerals and Natural Resources Department (EMNRD), Forestry Division through the 2023 Volunteer Fire Assistance Program (VFA). This VFA grant money is provided through emergency funds made available by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service to protect communities from catastrophic wildland fire.
The grant funding focuses primarily on wildland fire objectives including: 1) equipping rural fire departments with wildland fire equipment; 2) organizing rural fire departments for wildland fire response; and 3) wildland fire prevention. Each VFA recipient must provide a cost-share of 10 percent.
Cuba Fire received two awards; one in the amount of $24,999.99 for staffing a dedicated Wildland Coordinator position to train and certify wildland firefighters; and a second in the amount of $18,257.96 for provisioning Wildland Fire Suppression Equipment to include Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), hoses, and fittings for engine apparatus.
“This grant funding is imperative for our volunteer department to adequately respond to fire events in our high-risk Wildland Urban Interface,” says Cuba Fire Rescue Chief Rick Romero. “The potential for wildfire and high-value losses in Cuba and the surrounding area is great. These grants will help us to build our capacity with trained professionals and critical equipment.”
The Wildland Fire Coordinator will work directly with the department and other fire and emergency management agencies to set up wildland firefighter training, track wildland fire qualifications, and develop interagency agreements such as the New Mexico Resource Mobilization Plan. Additionally, the Coordinator will help to facilitate fire prevention programs in the community to include fuels reduction projects, defensible space workshops, and other public education outreach.
In 2020, Cuba Fire was awarded a total of $12,100.00 in VFA funds to cover the cost of equipment upgrades for Brush 12 – a 2017 Ford 550 4WD Engine – to be outfitted and rated a Type 6 response unit under current USFS Wildland Fire Engine Requirements. Additionally, wildfire personnel were equipped with the PPE and training necessary to perform on call with Brush 12 as an active inter-agency resource available to the NM-EMNRD Resource Mobilization Plan.
In 2021, Cuba Fire added Tender 12, a 2021 Freightliner M2 106 Tandem wheel tender, to the fleet. This apparatus carries 3,000 gallons on board and can readily drop a portable 3,000 gal. tank to aid in fire suppression for wildland events. The truck was purchased in cash with the help of a Fire Protection Grant, and Fire Protection Funds from Cuba Fire Rescue.
The Cuba Fire Rescue service area is sandwiched between National Forest and Wilderness Area, public access and leased BLM lands, Tribal lands, and private property. Recent indicators across the local space of 19,200 acres include a consistently high number of abandoned campfires in the neighboring forest, accumulating fuelwood in wilderness areas, lower than average precipitation, uncontrolled ranchland and pile burning activities, unpredictable oil and gasworks, and regular lightning strikes.
Cuba Fire Rescue is currently recruiting volunteers to be active first responders, and the organization is looking forward to offering cross-training opportunities for personnel to qualify in both wildland and structure fires. Though supported by USFS Cuba Ranger District with two Type 6 engines located in the Village of Cuba for initial response, Forest Fire District Managers calculate this is far below the number of wildland units needed to attack a wildfire of any size. The nearest available equipment is stationed 60 miles away or more. Cuba Fire Rescue currently operates under contract with Sandoval County to be first response for all fire and EMS calls in the rural area within a 30-mile radius.
Cuba Fire Rescue is supportive of Fire Adapted Communities and is looking forward to more training, outreach, and proactive interventions specific to reducing wildfire risk for the community-at-large. By having a more capable, qualified, and readied team available in Cuba, wildland firefighting crew and apparatus can be dispatched to assist in cooperative prescribed burns, training, or other incidents requiring additional trusted resources.