Over $40,000 has been awarded to the fire departments across the Tri-Town as part of the Department of Fire Services Fiscal Year 2023 Firefighter Safety Equipment Grant Program.

$5 million in total was granted to 308 fire departments in Massachusetts including Marion, Mattapoisett and Rochester according to an announcement made by the Baker-Politio administration. 

According to a press release from the Marion Fire Department, “the state grant program provides local fire departments with a variety of equipment that makes the dangerous job of firefighting safer.”

The Marion Fire Department was given a total of $14,919.92 as part of the grant program. 

According to the press release, the grant will go towards the purchase of “two individual portable radios, a ventilation fan, a Personnel Accountability System, and four Rapid Deployment Rescue Litters, which are used for moving patients in a mass casualty incident.”

According to the press release, the items most frequently funded by the Fire Safety Equipment Grant include ballistic vests, helmets and boots.

The Rochester Fire Department was granted $14,200. The Rochester Fire Department did not comment on what the grant will be used for.

The Mattapoisett Fire Department was granted $15,500.

According to Mattapoisett Fire Chief Andrew Murray, the grant will go towards replacing the department’s aging nozzles and fire hoses.

“This program is an opportunity to make sure they are properly protected every time they answer a call for help,” said Governor Charlie Baker in a press release from the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security Department of Fire Services.