Self-contained breathing gear to be purchased with $49,500 grant.
By: Jill Matthews
ROCKY HILL Rocky Hill Hook & Ladder Company No. 1 received a $49,500 grant for fire operations and firefighter safety, the Federal Emergency Management Agency announced Monday.
The borough, which applied for the grant last spring, has to match 10 percent of the grant.
"We are thrilled," said Fire Chief Tom Schweitzer, who added he was grateful to the Borough Council and U.S. Rep. Mike Ferguson (R-7) for their assistance in obtaining the grant. "The funding that we are getting is going to give us self-contained breathing apparatus."
FEMA will have given out a total of 7,000 awards worth $750 million in direct assistance to firefighters for the 2003 fiscal year. Sixteen other communities in New Jersey were also awarded grants ranging from $4,000 to $170,000.
"Along with Congress, which appropriated the fire grant funding, we’ll continue to support our first responders to ensure that they have the equipment and training necessary to respond to all hazards, man-made or natural," said Michael Brown, undersecretary of Homeland Security for Emergency Preparedness and Response in a statement.
The U.S. Fire Administration, a division of FEMA, administers the Assistance for Firefighters Grant Program. The program assists rural, urban and suburban fire departments throughout the United States. FEMA became part of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security in March 2003.