Blumenthal, Murphy, Courtney Announce Federal Grant For North Thompsonville Fire Department Breathing Apparatuses

(Hartford, CT) - U.S. Senator Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), U.S. Senator Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) and Congressman Joe Courtney (D-2) today announced a $231,330 federal grant to purchase 55 self-contained breathing apparatuses for the North Thompsonville Fire Department.

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.

“These self-contained breathing apparatuses are life lines for firefighters as they enter burning buildings. With this grant, North Thompsonville will be able to immediately purchase state of the art, life-saving gear—purchases that otherwise would have been delayed for years, depriving brave firefighters of the latest in safety equipment. We will continue to fight for additional federal resources to ensure all firefighters and first responders have the vital resources and technology they need,” said Blumenthal, Murphy and Courtney.

“Self-contained breathing apparatuses are the most important piece of equipment a firefighter uses. This grant will give us the latest equipment which would have otherwise been purchased over the course of the next 5 years. Instead, we have the ability to immediately outfit our department with this equipment which ensures the safety of our firefighters. We appreciate the support of our federal partners,” said North Thompsonville Fire Chief Earl Provencher.

The grant is the 7th firefighting grant awarded in Connecticut for Fiscal Year 2013. Stamford received $1.05 million to hire six additional firefighters through the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) and Assistance to Firefighters grant programs administered by FEMA. Norwalk, Orange, Waterbury, Stafford Ambulance Association Inc. and the town of East Hartford also received grants to support operations and safety measures.