Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand today announced $27,000 in federal funding for the Village of Elmira Heights Fire Department. These federal dollars will be used by the Village of Elmira Heights Fire Department to recruit additional first responders. The funding is allocated through the Department of Homeland Security’s (DHS) Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) program.
“This is a great investment for Elmira Heights,” Senator Gillibrand said. “This federal investment will help improve the fire department’s ability to respond and keep families safe. I will continue working to ensure our first responders have the tools and resources they need to keep our communities safe.”
“These funds come at the most opportune time when budgets are really tight and more firefighters are leaving than signing up,” said James Locker Jr. Chief, Elmira Heights Fire Department. “These funds are going to be put to great use to aggressively recruit and retain good quality firefighters.”
The SAFER program, established by DHS, is part of an effort to help fire departments across the country increase the number of firefighters in our communities, including re-hiring those that lost their jobs during the economic crisis. This program awards federal funding to fire departments to help them provide round-the-clock staffing to their communities from dangerous fire-related hazards.