On Thursday afternoon, the Chuckatuck Volunteer Fire Department learned that it would get a little extra help making its firefighters work a bit safer.

Congressman Randy Forbes announced that the fire department would receive a federal grant in the amount of $60,268 as part of the Fiscal Year 2005 Assistance to Firefighter Grant Program. It's the second-straight year that the department has received an award.

"Fire departments often face unique funding challenges, especially when the department needs to replace anticipated equipment," Forbes said. "I am pleased that the Chuckatuck Volunteer Fire Department in Suffolk received this well-deserved and much-needed funding to assist them in protecting and serving local residents."

Volunteer fire chief Greg Parsons said that the money would be used for turnout gear (the equipment firefighters wear on incidents) and headsets on the trucks to protect workers' hearing and allow communication on incidents.

"The grant is a good source of alternative funding," Parsons said. "Being a small department (there's roughly 30 active members), our budget is limited to do what we need to do to keep up with standards. We just evaluated our needs, and firefighters' safety is at the top of our list."

The Grant Program is administered by the U.S. Fire Administration, part of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and assists rural, urban and suburban fire departments throughout the country.