Hawleyville Firefighters Awarded Fire Equipment Grant
Hawleyville Firefighters Awarded Fire Equipment Grant
By Andrew Gorosko
The Hawleyville Volunteer Fire Company has been awarded more than $68,000 in grant money from the federal government to acquire personal protective fire gear for some of the companyâs members.
The fire company, which is based at 34 Hawleyville Road (Route 25), is one of five volunteer fire companies that serve the town.
In an April 23 statement, US Senators Chris Dodd and Joe Lieberman said the fire company will receive $68,780 in fire grants from the US Department of Homeland Securityâs Assistance to Firefighters Grant program. That program is run by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
Hawleyville Fire Chief Joe Farrell said April 28 that the grant will be used to purchase gear for individual firefighters, including turnout clothes such as coats, pants, boots, gloves, and helmets.
Also, the grant will be used to buy self-contained breathing equipment for firefighters, which provides them with an independent air supply when they venture into hazardous environments, such as smoke-filled buildings.
The grant money should provide personal protective gear for about ten firefighters, the fire chief said. The fire company has about three dozen firefighters.
After the fire company receives the grant, the equipment should be delivered in about six to eight weeks, Chief Farrell said.
 The fire company, which used a specialist in grant applications to seek the funds, had initially sought about $80,000 for the personal protective gear, but the amount approved was apparently reduced during the grant review process, Chief Farrell said.
Chief Farrell said the new equipment will be of better quality than the gear currently in use. The acquisition will aid the fire companyâs firefighting program, he added.
The air-supply units to be acquired will have a more advanced design than the equipment now in use, he said.
During the past decade, FEMA has distributed more than $66 million in Connecticut to help firefighting agencies strengthen their emergency response capabilities.