South Windsor Fire Department Awarded Over $158,000 in Grants

(Washington, DC)—Connecticut Senators Joe Lieberman and Richard Blumenthal announced today that the South Windsor fire department will receive $158,000 from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Assistance to Firefighters Grants program (AFG), administered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). The grant will be used for general education and awareness of fire prevention:

“We rely on our citizenry in so many ways to prevent and respond to emergencies, and fire prevention education is an important way to convey valuable safety information, including critical skills that can save lives,” said Lieberman. “That is why this grant is so important to the security of all of our communities. The tools and skills necessary for emergency safety and preparedness are now available to residents of South Windsor.”

Blumenthal said, “The more educated our communities are about fire safety, the safer we are as a whole. Our local fire departments do an outstanding job on a day-to-day basis keeping us safe from fire related disasters. This grant will help support them by educating the residents of South Windsor on fire safety and prevention, thereby reducing the risk of harm to our families and neighbors.”

Lieberman has a long history of advocating for fire safety.  In 2000 and 2003, respectively, he was a cosponsor of the FIRE and SAFER Acts and on March 10, 2011, introduced the Fire Grant Reauthorization Act of 2011, legislation that reauthorizes the AFG and SAFER programs for five years.  Since the FIRE and SAFER Acts were signed into law, FEMA has distributed 644 grants for a total of over $71 million in Connecticut to help fire departments strengthen their response capabilities.  Lieberman is also a Co-Chair of the Congressional Fire Caucus for the 112th Congress.

Blumenthal has fought to ensure the fair provision of survivor benefits to the spouses and families of police officers and firefighters who have been injured, or lost their lives, in the line of duty.

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