02.12.14

Durbin Announces a More Than $510,000 Investment in Illinois Firefighters

[WASHINGTON, DC] – U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) announced today that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), part of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), has awarded a $510,094 in grant to two Illinois fire departments for recruitment initiatives aimed at increasing the number of frontline firefighters.

 

“Today's grant ensures that when fires or other emergencies occur, firefighters and first-responders will always stand ready to protect the communities they bravely serve,” Durbin said,” Durbin said.

 

The following Illinois fire departments will receive funding under today's announcement:

 

  • Crete Fire Department (Crete, Illinois): $195,060 in funding;

 

  • Limestone Township Fire Protection District (Kankakee, Illinois): $315,034 in funding.

 

This funding is provided through the Fiscal Year 2013 DHS's Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) program. The SAFER program seeks to enhance a department's ability to maintain 24-hour staffing and ensures that the community has adequate protection from fire and fire-related hazards.  In Fiscal Year 2013, the program will award approximately $320 million directly to fire departments and volunteer support groups to expand the number of firefighters available to more effectively protect the health and safety of the public.