Firefighters in the Coal City Fire Protection District will be strapping on new air packs soon, as a grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency will fund a needed replacement of the aging equipment.

Congressman Adam Kinzinger recently notified the fire protection district that it had been awarded not one, but two FEMA Assistance to Firefighters Grants [AFG], the awards totaling $171,498.

AFG is a federally supported program with an allocation of $700 million with half of that dedicated toward safety awards going to departments nationwide.

According to FEMA, the program has been in place since 2001 and serves to assist firefighters and other first responders obtain needed equipment, protective gear, emergency vehicles, training and other resources needed to protect the public and emergency personnel.

The $164,861 health and safety award Coal City received will be used to purchase the self-contained breathing apparatus [SCBA] air packs that are used by firefighters to enter areas with toxic atmospheres.

“These funds will help us to continue to provide the best safety equipment available to our members to help protect the public. We try to be as proactive as we can when it comes to our member’s safety,” said CCFPD president Randy Alderson.

Coal City fire officials report many of the air packs scheduled to be replaced are more than 20 years old.

Kinzinger was able to view the packs slated for replacement when he came to town on Thursday, Aug. 27 to officially announce the grant awards and congratulate James Seerup and Karl Wexelberg on their recent appointments to chief and deputy chief.

As noted a week earlier during his swearing in, Wexelberg took the lead on applying for the FEMA grants that included an $6,637 COVID-19 Supplemental Award from the CARES Act, which passed Congress earlier this year.

Through the CARES Act $100 million was designated to assist first responders with the purchase of personal protective equipment [PPE] and related supplies.

The COVID-19 response funds will provide the department with means for better and more efficient way of cleaning ambulances, equipment and supplies.

The CFPD serves the communities of Coal City, Diamond, Carbon Hill, Braidwood, Goose Lake Township and unincorporated Morris areas covering 65 square miles. The department provides fire, advanced life support emergency medical services, as well as many other special team services to those it serves with a response of approximately 2,000 calls per year.



The original article, with photos, can be found on the Free Press Newspapers website here.