Bosque County Sheriff's Office secures grant for search and rescue boat

• Bosque County Sheriff's Office was selected to be awarded a safety grant, allowing them to purchase a search and rescue boat for use on Lake Whitney. Courtesy photo

  Bosque County Sheriff's Office was selected to be awarded a safety grant, allowing them to purchase a search and rescue boat for use on Lake Whitney. Courtesy photo

The Bosque County Sheriff’s Office was selected to receive grant funding to purchase a search and rescue boat for use on Lake Whitney.

Bosque County Sheriff Trace Hendricks said his department often relied on game wardens to get out on the water, but if the sheriff’s office owned and maintained its own boat, deputies could get on the water themselves.

Funds from the Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation grant will address a need among Bosque County first responders when responding to calls for service on the lake.

While the boat would be used for search and rescue operations on Lake Whitney, it would also be used for safety patrols during periods of heavy lake traffic.

“We don’t intend to get too far off into enforcement, that’s why we have game wardens. We’re more interested in boater safety and helping those who might be stranded on the water or looking for those who are lost,” Hendricks said.

Deputies taking the boat on the water will first have to be certified. The sheriff’s office had one certified deputy and would send others for certification as well.