September 20, 2019 3:40 a.m.
On Thursday, Congressman Peter DeFazio announced that the Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency has awarded multiple grants exceeding $1.7 million to jurisdictions in Oregon’s Fourth Congressional District to assist in local firefighting efforts.
Two Douglas County agencies are beneficiaries of a grant.
The DeFazio release said the grants, which come from the Assistance to Firefighters Grant, Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response Grant, and the Fire Prevention and Safety Grant programs, are intended to maintain and increase staffing, improve training, and enhance safety for the state’s firefighters.
DeFazio said that “our firefighters are on the front line of public safety”. He said everything possible must be done to ensure that firefighters have the best training and most modern equipment. He said that southwest Oregon’s firefighters are often called upon to respond to wildfires that have posed a “persistent threat” to rural communities and economies.
The Tenmile Rural Fire District is receiving just over $110,000 while the Glide Rural Fire Protection District is getting slightly more than $82,000 in AFG program awards. The DeFazio release did not provide specifics about what the funds will be used for.