UPDATED: Watervliet Fire Department gets $283,000 Grant

I reached out to Watervliet's City Manager, Mark Gleason, for more info and the fire department. Here's the link to our story (and a statement from the mayor is below): http://www.troyrecord.com/government-and-politics/20140904/watervliet-fire-department-gets-283000-in-federal-funds

--Danielle Sanzone
dsanzone@troyrecord.com

From Wednesday's press release:

WATERVLIET – Congressman Paul Tonko (D-NY) announced today that Watervliet Fire Department will receive $283,860 in Assistance to Firefighters Grants (AFG) from the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in cooperation with the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA). Tonko’s office provided a letter of support for the grant, which will be used to enhance operations and safety at the facility.

“Capital Region first responders routinely put themselves in harm’s way to protect our friends and neighbors in communities across the region. It is critical they have the training and most up-to-date equipment to continue to effectively protect the health and safety of the public,” said Congressman Tonko.

The primary goal of FEMA’s Assistance to Firefighters Grant program is to meet the firefighting and emergency response needs of fire departments and nonaffiliated emergency medical service organizations. Since 2001, the AFG has provided approximately $5.6 billion in grants to first-responder organizations to obtain much-needed emergency response equipment, personal protective equipment, firefighting and emergency vehicles, research and training. During fiscal year (FY) 2013, the AFG will award another $288.8 million to first-responder organizations that need support to improve their capability to respond to fires and emergencies of all types.

From Mayor Mike Manning:

 “Our firefighters put themselves in harm's way every day to keep our families safe and it's great to see support for our local first responders,” said Watervliet Mayor Mike Manning. "In 2009 we started a municipal ambulance service within the fire department and in 2011, our fire department became the primary transport agency for the Village of Green Island which is within our mutual aid system. Due to the increased number of transports, it is important our firefighters are trained to the paramedic level. This funding will allow for more of our firefighters to participate in paramedic training programs. It is critical they have these opportunities to help those in need and we are grateful to have this funding from FEMA."