Westfield Receives FEMA/DHS AFG Grant

Westfield Fire was notified today that it has been granted $74,518 in FEMA/DHS Assistance to Firefighter Grant (AFG) program funds to assist in the purchase of mobile and portable radio equipment.  The Westfield Fire District will be contributing 10% of the total cost of the project.  According to FEMA, "The primary goal of the Assistance to Firefighters Grants (AFG) is to meet the firefighting and emergency response needs of fire departments and nonaffiliated emergency medical service organizations. Since 2001, AFG has helped  firefighters and other first responders to obtain critically needed equipment, protective gear, emergency vehicles, training, and other resources needed to protect the public and emergency personnel from fire and related hazards."  In this case, grant funds will allow Westfield Fire to address a number of problems related to aging non-FCC compliant equipment and will also allow the Department to position itself for significantly improved interoperability with mutual aid departments as well as other local, state and federal agencies.  Receipt of grant funds is a huge win for the Department and the District, which has had to manage a tight budget in light of the closing of the Aetna facility on Middle Street.

Special thanks to Lieutenant Nick DeJohn, who was primarily responsible for drafting the grant, determining the scope of the project and establishing specifically what equipment the Department sought to purchase with the grant funds.  Additional thanks to the Westfield Fire District Board of Commissioners for their continued support of the Department as it relates to special projects of this kind. 

Click here to read the related article in the Hartford Courant.