Kern County gets FEMA grant to fight wildfires

BAKERSFIELD — Federal, state, and local firefighters and first responders across the state continue to battle wildfires around the clock to protect Californians.

During a time in need, one fire department was awarded grant money from the Federal Emergency Management Agency for critically needed equipment.

Nearly $2.9 million in federal dollars were awarded to the Kern County Fire Department to replace decades-old breathing equipment announced on Tuesday by the fire department on their Facebook page.

Representative Kevin McCarthy and his staff helped in aiding the fire department in acquiring the much-needed funding.

“I sent Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf a letter in support of the fire department’s grant application earlier this year because it is crucial that the men and women fighting fires have advanced equipment to best protect themselves from the flames and smoke,” McCarthy said in a statement.

The fund will replace almost 20-year-old personal breathing equipment with state-of-the-art Self Contained Breathing Apparatus. The fire department estimates the new equipment will provide an increase in oxygen supply from 30-45 minutes.

The Department also received nearly $275,000 from the Coronavirus Aid Relief and Economic Security

Act for personal protective equipment and other necessary supplies to protect their employees during the pandemic.

“Our firefighters are more important now than ever, and as they work to end these fires, I remain committed to working with local officials and the State of California to bring federal resources to our region so that our communities can swiftly recover,” McCarthy said in a statement.