CLALLAM COUNTY – Clallam County Fire District 2 beat some pretty long odds to procure a new brush fire engine with the help of a grant from FEMA. The 2017 F-550 was designed specifically to fight fires in the wildland areas around Port Angeles and beyond. It wasn’t cheap at over $140,000, but FEMA covered 95% of that cost with a grant that Chief Sam Phillips says very few fire district’s ever see.

We asked the Chief if his district’s adjacency to a national park might have helped their case.

The engine replaces a 1988 model which was deemed no longer safe to operate. It’s very similar to one purchased last year, which was fully funded by the fire district. This brings the district’s wildland fire fleet up to date with current state and national safety standards.