Tri-County Electric gives $36,000 to local fire departments

In Hooker, Tri-County Electric Cooperative put $36,000 directly into wildfire readiness by cutting $1,000 checks to 36 fire departments and emergency response agencies serving its territory and surrounding communities.

The cooperative’s split matters because it spread the money widely across the Texas County response network, from Hooker and Guymon to Goodwell, Texhoma, Hardesty, Adams, Baker, Hough, Optima, Tyrone and Yarbrough. For departments already stretched by dry fuels, wind and repeated fire runs, even a $1,000 check can help with the basic costs that keep crews moving and ready when the next grass fire or structure fire starts.

Tri-County Electric tied the donation to one of its seven cooperative principles, Concern for Community, and said the money was meant to help agencies obtain the tools and resources they need to respond effectively when fires or other emergencies strike. CEO Zac Perkins said, “investing in the people who protect and serve is one of the best investments the cooperative can make.”

The gift also fit a pattern. In March 2023, the cooperative said it distributed $38,000 in $1,000 grants to 38 emergency response agencies. The 2026 total was slightly smaller, but the structure was the same: broad support, small individual grants and no single department taking the full amount.

That approach lines up with the wider fire season Oklahoma has faced. The Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management said wildfire activity rose in February, triggering regular coordination calls among OEM, Oklahoma Forestry Services, the Department of Public Safety and the Oklahoma National Guard. Since Feb. 17, nine Fire Management Assistance Grants have been approved to help reimburse eligible fire-response costs.

State guidance also warns that Oklahoma wildfires are most often sparked by human activity when high winds and dry conditions combine. That warning has particular weight in the Oklahoma Panhandle, where volunteer and small paid departments often back each other up across county lines and where response time can decide how much a fire takes.

The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry says its Community Fire Assistance program supports departments through rural fire defense, grants, training and wildfire reporting tools. Private help has also been flowing in, including a $30,000 equipment donation from AFR Insurance, Oklahoma Farm Bureau and Oklahoma Farm Bureau Insurance to replace gear lost in containment efforts.

Tri-County’s donation is small compared with the cost of a major wildfire, but in Texas County it lands where the need is immediate: in the agencies that answer the call first, and often keep answering until the fire is out.