WASHINGTON, DC – U.S. Senators Robert Menendez (D-NJ) and Cory Booker (D-NJ) today announced the awarding of $440,600 in federal funding to recruit and hire firefighters in South Orange and Pemberton. The grants were awarded through the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) program. “The safety of New Jerseyans has to be a top priority,” said Senator Menendez. “This federal funding will put the necessary firefighters on the job to ensure effective responses to local emergencies in these communities.”
“The funding announced today will help keep people in South Orange and Pemberton New Jersey safe, putting new firefighters on the ground and helping to recruit the staff necessary to protect our communities,” Booker said. “I am grateful for FEMA’s continued support.”
From the federal awards announced today:
• the South Orange Fire Department will receive a $339,600 to hire firefighters
• the Good Will Fire Company of Pemberton will receive a $101,000 for recruitment of new staff.
The highly competitive SAFER grant program provides funding directly to fire departments and volunteer firefighter organizations in order to help them increase the number of trained “front line” firefighters in their communities.
For more information about the SAFER program, please visit: http://www.fema.gov/staffing-adequate-fire-emergency-response-grants.