SPRINGDALE — The Fire Department could soon have new firefighting gear that won’t be so heavy and hot.

The new gear — called wildland gear — is used for lighter duty, such as fighting brush fires, emergency medical calls or rescue missions, Kevin McDonald said. The coat, pants, gloves and helmet now used — called bunker gear — would still be used for structure fires, he said.

“Fire departments in places like Colorado and Montana have carried dual sets of gear for years,” McDonald said. “The wildland gear is lighter and less expensive.”

Department officials have asked permission from the City Council to purchase the wildland gear for $60,952 from Act 833 money. Act 833 money comes from insurance fees turned back to counties which divide it among fire departments, McDonald said.

The City Council agenda calls for a vote on the gear during a 6 p.m. Tuesday meeting.

The idea came after Fayetteville department officials decided to buy wildland gear, said Mike Irwin, Springdale fire chief.

The Fayetteville Fire Department plans to buy about $150,000 in wildland gear, said Mauro Campos, Fayetteville battalion chief. The department hasn't yet received the gear, he said.

Each of Springdale's 105 firefighters would receive a wildland set to go with the traditional bunker gear, McDonald said. Officials would draw up a policy defining when each set is used, Irwin said.

Consideration for firefighter safety will be the primary factor used to determine which set is used, Irwin said.

The lighter gear is needed for fighting grass, brush and timber fires, McDonald said, when the blaze isn't in a structure. Such fires can move quickly when conditions are in their favor, he said.

A fire on Marchant Road last summer burned through a hay field fast, and threatened timber and a barn, said Betty Marchant.

“It was moving fast,” Marchant said. “I was glad to see the Fire Department show up.”

The Cave Springs Fire Department was the first on the scene, Marchant said.

Springdale has mutual aid agreements with several smaller fire departments, including Tontitown, Lowell and Johnson, as well as Cave Springs, Irwin said. In some of the outlying areas of the city, the smaller departments are closer than a Springdale fire station.

“Those mutual aid agreements work well,” Irwin said.

The Springdale Fire Department responded to 329 brush or grass fires in the last 36 months, McDonald said. The department also responded to an average of over 6,000 medical calls each year, he said. The wildland gear could be worn on all of those calls, if allowed by the new policy, Irwin said.

Springdale receives Act 833 money from both Benton and Washington counties, McDonald said. A portion of Springdale extends into Benton County but the majority is in Washington County.

The department received $52,984 in Act 833 money during 2012, all from Washington County. In the 2013, the total jumped to $72,966, with the difference mainly being the first payment from Benton County to Springdale, McDonald said.

The department has about $93,000 remaining in its Act 833 account, McDonald said. The department spent $91,8oo for hoses and nozzles in 2013 and $209,212 for a system to capture vehicle exhausts inside fire stations.