PLYMOUTH — Chief Neil Foley is pleased to announce that the Plymouth Fire Department has been awarded a regional Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
The Assistance to Firefighters Grant program is a competitive federal grant initiative designed to help municipalities manage the financial impacts of delivering fire protection and emergency medical services to their communities.
The Plymouth Fire Department has been awarded $631,076. These grant funds will be used to replace 76 self-contained breathing apparatuses (SCBA) and related equipment. At the last Spring Town Meeting, voters approved $997,961 worth of funding for the project, however, the total cost of the replacement program came in under budget at $874,444. With the $631,076 in grant funding, the Town of Plymouth’s contribution has been reduced to $243,367.
“We are incredibly thankful to be awarded this grant which will allow us to replace our aging and outdated SCBAs,” said Chief Foley. “This equipment is crucial to the safety of our firefighters when responding to critical incidents.”
Chief Foley would also like to thank Deputy Chief Greg Kane and Business Manager LaDonna MacEachern for successfully securing grant funding for the department.
The Plymouth Fire Department recently completed an internal risk assessment and concluded that one of the department’s top priorities was to replace aging SCBA air packs with the latest model. The current inventory of Self-contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) was purchased in 2008 and has since been discontinued by the manufacturer. Additionally, two newer models of SCBA have since been created. The outdated packs require frequent, costly repairs and are difficult to properly decontaminate, thus exposing firefighters to known carcinogens.
“I would like to thank our Congressional Delegation for their support in this competitive grant process,” said Select Board Chair Richard J Quintal, Jr. “This grant will not only make the job safer for the men and women of the Plymouth Fire Department but also allow greater financial flexibility to fund future capital projects.”
Assistance to Firefighters Grants
Assistance to Firefighters Grants are allocated to fire departments nationally to fund and aid the firefighting and emergency response needs of fire departments and non-affiliated emergency medical service organizations.
These federal grants help firefighters and other first responders obtain critically needed equipment, protective gear, emergency vehicles, training and other resources necessary for protecting the public and emergency personnel from fire and related hazards.
For more information on the AFG program, click here.
###