FRAMINGHAM, MA -- As one of 266 municipal fire departments sharing in $1.9 million in grants, the Framingham Fire Department is slated to receive a total of $9,458.00 for FY 2023. Of that amount, $6,781 was granted for the Student Awareness of Fire Education (S.A.F.E.) program and an additional $2,677 for the Senior SAFE Program.

Making the announcement at Massachusetts Department of Fire Services facility in Stow, Governor Charlie Baker said, “For more than 25 years, the S.A.F.E. grant program has provided hundreds of thousands of Massachusetts students with fire and life safety lessons that last a lifetime," adding, "We are glad that this year’s awards will support consistent, statewide, professional safety education in a record number of communities.”

The average number of children who die in fires annually has dropped by nearly 80% since the S.A.F.E. program began in FY 1996, and Massachusetts recently went nearly three years without losing a child to fire. The Senior SAFE program was launched in FY 2014, funding fire safety education for another vulnerable population – seniors, who face a disproportionate risk of dying in a fire at home.

“The Senior SAFE grants support home visits, smoke and CO alarm installations, and fire safety presentations delivered by firefighters in partnership with service providers,” said Lt. Governor Karyn Polito. “This valuable program gives older adults the tools, knowledge, and strategies to stay safe and independent at home.”

This year’s awards will provide $1,103,488 in S.A.F.E. funding for 262 fire departments; $562,194 in Senior SAFE funding for 265 fire departments; and $252,783 for regional trailer props used by multiple fire departments to teach and demonstrate fire safety skills. Every department that applied for a grant received funding.

“The S.A.F.E. and Senior SAFE grants represent a smart investment in fire safety,” said Secretary of Public Safety and Security Terrence M. Reidy. “Youngsters and older adults are historically at greater risk in house fires, but that risk can be reduced through the targeted outreach, education, and awareness programs like these.”

“The S.A.F.E. and Senior SAFE programs bring trained firefighter-educators together with children and older adults to deliver age-appropriate fire and life safety lessons,” said State Fire Marshal Peter J. Ostroskey. “Fire service programs like these are part of the reason Massachusetts is one of the most fire-safe states in the nation, and I’m very glad that more communities than ever applied for this year’s grants.”

Links:

Student Awareness of Fire Education (S.A.F.E.) program info:

https://www.mass.gov/service-details/student-awareness-of-fire-education-safe

Senior SAFE Program info:

https://www.mass.gov/service-details/senior-safe-program

The S.A.F.E. and Senior SAFE grant programs are funded through legislative earmarks to the Executive Office of Public Safety & Security, and administered by the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services.

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Source: MA Department of Fire Services press release