A Federal Emergency Management Agency grant will allow the City of Mt. Morris Fire Department to purchase vital equipment for all of its firefighters.
The northern Genesee County department announced they have received $155,620 via FEMA's Assistance to Firefighters grant and is spending the money to replace all self-contained breathing apparatuses, or SCBAs, currently in use.
The purchase of the SCBA units is "the single largest and most significant improvement to firefighter safety at the department in the past 30 years," according to a statement regarding the grant.
Grant dollars will also be used to replace an air compressor and fill station for the breathing apparatuses that firefighters use when they enter buildings during a fire. The grant proposal was written by retired Mt. Morris Fire Lt. Barb Breen.
Others helping in the effort to secure the grant include Mt. Morris Fire Chief Michael Vogt, City of Mt. Morris Fire Captain James Young, and City of Mt. Morris City Manager Elena Danishevskaya.