Blumenthal, Murphy, Larson Announce Federal Grant to CPTV to Produce Fire Safety Educational Videos
(Hartford, CT) – U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Congressman John B. Larson (D-1) announced today a $141,420 Assistance to Firefighters Grant for the Connecticut Public Broadcasting Network (CPTV) to produce a series of fire safety educational programs to air on their network during the holiday season. Connecticut Public Television will partner with Stepping Stones Museum and State Fire Marshal Robert Ross to produce the series of education vignettes, which will target vulnerable populations including the elderly, disabled and children.
The grant program is administered by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency in cooperation with the U.S. Fire Administration.
“In this fiscal year alone, Connecticut residents and first responders have received 22 federal fire safety grants, offering vital funding to hire and train new firefighters and provide our brave first responders with the best technology and safety equipment available. This latest grant—to assist Connecticut Public Television in producing a series of educational fire safety videos—complements the efforts of all of our heroic firefighters across the state. There is no better way to keep our residents and first responders safe than to prevent fires from occurring in the first place, and to provide residents with life-saving information for what to do and how to stay safe in the event a fire occurs,” Blumenthal said.
“This grant recognizes the Connecticut Public Broadcasting Network’s deep commitment to educating families in our state about fire safety,” said Murphy. “This series of educational videos will help prevent fires and teach people how to stay safe when fires do happen. This is important for people of all ages, especially during the holiday season, when we see a spike in accidental fires. I’m proud to support CPTV’s creative approach to fire prevention and safety.”
“Providing comprehensive and up to date information on fire prevention is crucial to avoiding fire related dangers in and outside the home,” said Larson. “With this funding, Connecticut residents will have an excellent tool at their disposal for learning the best ways to avoid a fire, making our communities safer and helping to reduce the number hazardous situations for our first responders.”
Connecticut Public Television (CPTV) President and CEO Jerry Franklin said: “We are absolutely thrilled to be partnering with Stepping Stones Museum and the State Fire Marshal. We are thrilled to be working on this very important project to educate the residents of the State of Connecticut in fire prevention and safety.”
The grant is the 22nd firefighting grant awarded in Connecticut in Fiscal Year 2013. Middletown received $1.14 million to hire eight additional firefighters and Waterbury received $2.9 million to hire new fire recruits through the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) and Assistance to Firefighters grant programs administered by FEMA. Milford, New Britain, New Milford, Brookfield, Stratford, Bristol, East Woodstock, Killingly, Plainfield, Willington, Seymour, Middletown, East Hartford, Shelton, Norwalk, Torrington, Southington and Waterbury also received grants to support operations and safety measures.