Friday, August 25, 2006

Bellevue Fire receives $67,450 grant

Funds will be used to purchase safety equipment


By JASON KAUFFMAN
Express Staff Writer

The Bellevue Fire Department has received a $67,450 grant from the federal government to purchase personal protective equipment and other gear.

The grant, which requires the city to come up with $3,500 in matching funds, is from the 2005 Assistance to Firefighters Program, administered by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

The grant will fund purchase of safety-related items for volunteer firefighters, Bellevue Fire Chief Greg Beaver said Wednesday.

"Our turnouts (protective clothing), basically," Beaver said.

That includes self-contained breathing apparatuses (SCBAs) and a fill station for filling them, he said.

He called the city's $3,500 contribution "minimal as compared to what we will get."

Beaver said he believes the grant is the first of its kind the Bellevue Fire Department has ever received.

"I know for sure it's the first in 13 years," he said.

The Assistance to Firefighters Program assists local fire departments by helping them purchase essential firefighting equipment, fund firefighter health and safety programs, enhance emergency medical services programs and conduct fire education and prevention programs.

"The Assistance to Firefighters grants ensures that the nation's firefighters continue to have the basic capability to do their jobs, improve safety and save lives," David Paulison of the Department of Homeland Security stated in a news release announcing the Bellevue grant on Aug. 17.

In its fiscal year 2005 awards, the program distributed $650 million to fire departments throughout the country.




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