Madison, Clinton fire stations get FEMA funds

The Federal Emergency Management Agency has awarded four federal grants totaling $323,875 to eastern Connecticut fire departments, including the towns of Clinton and Madison.

U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, D-Conn., announced the dispensation in a press release late last week.

Money was dispersed through the Assistance to Firefighters Grants Program, and will assist departments in purchasing essential new equipment, including a new brush firefighting truck, vehicle exhaust removal systems and more, the news release said.

Such grant programs are “essential for bridging the gaps in our local budgets for specific projects like this one,” Clinton Volunteer Fire Chief Brian Manware said in a prepared statement. “Federal support for our stations and firefighters is important right now, and grant awards like these represent a serious boost to our fire station.”

“We are grateful to receive funding from the AFG program to replace fire hose that has failed annual testing or exceeded its usable life,” Madison Hose Co. #1 Chief Robert Kyttle said in the statement.

Clinton will receive $21,428.57, and use it to support the purchase of personal safety/rescue bailout systems, Courtney said. This marks the first AFG award that the department has received in 10 years.

Madison will get an AFG grant award of $38,161.54 to go toward the purchase of new firefighting hose.

The other municipalities awarded were Bolton and Glastonbury.

“This is the kind of federal support that can really help our local fire stations get back to full strength while our towns continue the economic recovery,” Courtney said in the press release.

He called the program “a versatile tool that can be used to purchase everything from lifesaving equipment to important training, and now it’s going to help four of our local stations get the vehicles and supplies they need.”