CANTON — Chief Charles Doody is pleased to announce that the Canton Fire Department is one of over 300 fire departments across the state to have been awarded a grant as part of the Department of Fire Services Fiscal Year 2022 Firefighter Safety Equipment Grant Program.
The $15,944.75 grant awarded to the Canton Fire Department will be used to replace obsolete portable radios with state-of-the-art Motorola APX 6000 portable radios.
These radios are Bluetooth capable and will be piped into a firefighter’s facemask to allow for clear radio communication when they are “on air” during a fire. This greatly improves the quality of radio transmissions and in turn enhances the firefighter’s safety and the safety of those they are working to rescue.
The radios are also digital, which is an improvement over the department’s traditional analog radios as digital signals increase the reliability of the communications. The funds will go toward the purchase of five new units to be placed in frontline ladder trucks.
“We are grateful for the opportunity to apply for and receive these important grant funds allowing us to purchase vital equipment which cannot always be acquired through our traditional operating budget,” Chief Doody said.
This program enables fire departments to purchase a variety of equipment that will make firefighters’ jobs safer. This is the second year that funding has been awarded for this purpose as part of a $25 million bond bill filed by the Baker-Polito Administration to support firefighter safety and health in the coming years.
Fire departments in Massachusetts were able to apply to this program for 118 different types of eligible equipment, including personal protective clothing, gear washers and dryers, thermal imaging cameras, assorted hand tools and extrication equipment, communications resources, hazardous gas meters, fitness equipment, and more. In many cases, the purchase of this equipment will help departments attain compliance with Occupational Safety and Health Administration or National Fire Protection Association safety standards.
A complete list of the awards by department can be found here.
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