The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recently awarded more than $1.6 million in grants to fire departments and municipalities throughout Illinois, including the French Village Fire Department in Fairview Heights.
U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., said Monday that FEMA awarded $1,635,535 total. The French Village Fire Department received $97,143 in funding.
“This federal funding will ensure that when fires or other emergencies occur in our communities, our nation’s firefighters and first-responders have access to the best resources and the equipment necessary to help protect them as they protect us,” Durbin said in a news release.
The funding was provided through the the Department of Homeland Security’s Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program, which seeks to strengthen the nation’s overall level of preparedness and ability to respond to fire and fire related hazards.