Perry gets federal grant to help eight Lake County fire departments and Trumbull Township will get funds for new protective gear
Wednesday, February 01, 2012
Perry gets federal grant to help eight Lake County fire
departments and Trumbull Township will get funds for new protective
gear
U.S. Rep. Steven C. LaTourette (R-OH) today announced that Perry
Joint Fire District will receive a $408,526 federal grant that will
allow eight local departments to use a new station alerting
system. In addition, the all-volunteer Trumbull Township Fire
Department will receive $44,555 to purchase protective gear from
head to toe for 20 firefighters.
Under the Perry grant, the central dispatch center in Kirtland
will soon be able to alert eight departments in eastern Lake County
of emergencies. The station alerting system will be used by
the following fire departments: Leroy, Concord, Painesville
Township, Painesville, Perry, Madison, Fairport Harbor and Grand
River. Perry applied for the grant that will help all eight
departments.
The grant covers equipment that will be installed at the central
dispatch center in Kirtland, as well as all stations associated
with the eight fire departments.
"This is fantastic news for these departments and will greatly
help with updating communication capabilities in the county,"
LaTourette said. "This is such a competitive grant program,
and I'm very happy that this request was approved."
The Trumbull Township grant will allow the department to provide
new gear for 20 volunteer firefighters. It includes
everything from helmets to boots, plus jackets, pants and gloves.
All the new equipment and training will meet current safety
standards.
"The Trumbull Township Fire Department has an operating budget
of less than $20,000 a year and simply cannot afford to upgrade its
protective gear to meet safety standards," LaTourette
said. "This federal funding is a blessing for a department
where none of the firefighters are paid, but serve their community
because they feel a duty to protect others."
The Perry and Trumbull grants were awarded through the popular
Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) program that helps
departments obtain needed equipment and training. There were
nearly 16,500 requests for funding this year, and $380 million in
competitive grants will be awarded this year with Fiscal Year 2011
funding. Awards should be announced through the end of
September, LaTourette said.
For additional information on the Perry grant, contact Chief
James McDonald.