The federal government awarded a total of more than $500,000 to two Mercer County fire departments to buy new fire-fighting vehicles.

Sharon Fire Department and Transfer Volunteer Fire Department each received $261,250 as part of the federal Assistance to Firefighter’s Grant Program.

“I just got word by e-mail today,” Transfer Chief Phil Steele said Friday. “I’m pretty excited about that.”

“Oh, it’s fantastic news!” Sharon Fire Chief Terry Whalen said. “I’m ecstatic.”

Steele said the volunteer department, which covers Pymatuning and one-third of Delaware Township (and the rest of Delaware jointly with Fredonia’s volunteer department), had applied for the federal grant the past three years.

“We finally must’ve written it right,” he said, noting that it’s a competitive process based on the merit of applications.

Steele wrote the grant for Transfer, with help from the Mercer County Regional Council of Governments. In 2005, the program gave them about $90,000 for equipment.

Whalen said firefighter Robert Fiscus Jr. worked hard to write the grant and one last year that scored the department $82,000 for protective equipment.

With the grant, Transfer will replace a five-year-old pumper and a 25-year-old tanker with a single vehicle, Steele said.

Whalen said he’s been trying to replace a 20-year-old engine for several years and the grant should help the department do that.

They’ll have to put specifications for a new truck out to bid, but he said most run between $300,000 and $400,000. It takes about a year to build a new engine, Whalen said, and the federal money won’t actually be released until next year.

“But we want to get going on this,” he said.

The grant requires a five percent match from the city and when council approved the department’s application Whalen said Mayor Bob Lucas said there was money to cover what could have been a $20,000 match. With the funding the department received, the city’s share is about $13,000 Whalen said.

“We certainly can’t let this opportunity slip by because of matching funds,” Whalen said.

U.S. Rep. Phil English, 3rd District, announced the grants in a news release.