Congrats to the guys back in Wheelersburg OH for the grant on the new engine.

Press Release of Senator DeWine

WHEELERSBURG RECEIVES FIREFIGHTING GRANT THROUGH DEWINE BILL

Contact: Jeff Sadosky
Wednesday, September 7, 2005


Click here for
U.S. Senator Mike DeWine (R-OH) today announced that the Porter Township Fire Department will receive $261,250 as part of his Firefighter Investment and Response Enhancement (FIRE) Act, which provides competitive grants to local fire departments to help them better serve and protect residents and their property.

Senator DeWine wrote and passed the FIRE Act (S. 1941) in 2000, establishing a grant program dedicated to providing federal assistance to local fire departments. Senator DeWine’s legislation increased the federal commitment to firefighting and emergency response services. During the fiscal year 2005 appropriations process, Senator DeWine, a member of the Appropriations Committee, helped secure $650 million for the FIRE Act. In the fiscal year 2004 appropriations process, Senator DeWine passed an updated version of the bill that improves the FIRE Act by adding a provision guaranteeing federal funding for Emergency Medical Services (EMS) and extending the entire program through 2010. Since 2001, more than 878 separate grants have been awarded to Ohio fire departments, totaling more than $73 million. This money will assist in firefighting and fire prevention programs, and can be used to fund firefighter health and safety programs, acquire new firefighting equipment, and enhance EMS programs.

“I am pleased to know that Wheelersburg families and the Porter Township Fire Department will benefit from this grant,” said Senator DeWine. “I acknowledge the many sacrifices that firefighters and rescue workers make each and every day while protecting our families, homes, and businesses from the devastating effects of fire. By working to pass and fund the FIRE Act, we have ensured that fire departments in Ohio and elsewhere will have the resources to meet future service demands.”

The Office of Domestic Preparedness (ODP), part of the Department of Homeland Security, awards the grants through a competitive need-based process. Approximately 20,000 fire departments nationwide applied for grants in 2005, and ODP expects to award nearly 7,000 in 2005. The U.S. Fire Administration processes the applications and 300 fire service representatives from across the United States review the grant requests.

According to the United States Fire Administration, more than 2,500 children age 14 or younger were injured or killed in residential fires in 2004. Of these casualties, approximately 50 percent were under the age of five. Overall, fire is responsible for killing more Americans than all natural disasters combined.