Taylor County Volunteer Firefighters Upgrade Equipment with $1.4M Grant

The upgrade will enhance firefighter safety and improve coordination across departments.

Published on Feb. 14, 2026

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Volunteer fire departments across Taylor County, Texas are receiving a $1.4 million equipment upgrade funded through grants from the Community Foundation of Abilene and FEMA's Assistance to Firefighters Grant program. The funding will provide 129 new self-contained breathing apparatus air packs and related accessories to nine volunteer fire departments in the county, replacing aging and costly-to-maintain gear.

Why it matters

The new standardized equipment will not only improve firefighter safety, but also enhance coordination during large-scale emergencies by allowing departments to share air bottles and masks when responding together. Volunteer fire departments in rural areas like Taylor County rely heavily on grants and community support to maintain operations and upgrade essential gear.

The details

The air packs are critical safety tools that allow firefighters to breathe while operating in smoke-filled or hazardous environments. Several departments say the new equipment replaces gear that was more than a decade old and no longer serviceable. The funding will benefit nine volunteer fire departments across Taylor County, including Buffalo Gap, ECCA, Hamby, Jim Ned, Merkel, Moro, Potosi, Trent, and View.

  • The grant funding was announced on February 14, 2026.

The players

Community Foundation of Abilene

A regional nonprofit organization that provided grant funding for the firefighter equipment upgrades.

FEMA

The Federal Emergency Management Agency, which awarded an Assistance to Firefighters Grant to support the equipment upgrades.

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What’s next

The nine volunteer fire departments will begin receiving and deploying the new self-contained breathing apparatus air packs in the coming months.

The takeaway

This regional grant funding highlights the critical role that volunteer firefighters play in rural communities, and the importance of maintaining up-to-date safety equipment through collaborative efforts and community support.