By Brian T. Dessart
"Our goal is to maintain the highest level of safety for our firefighters," said ex-chief Henry Metzger. He said the grant would be used to purchase department materials, including protective equipment and breathing apparatus, personal safety systems and fitted masks. "We are grateful to Congresswoman Carolyn McCarthy and the congresswoman's Special Projects Coordinator, Michael Spira, who assisted the ERFD through this rigorous grant process," Metzger said.
Additionally, the village tacked 10 percent onto the Homeland Security grant, bringing the project total to $97,140. "The East Rockaway Fire Department chief, officers and members of the Grant Committee should be commended for writing and applying for this competitive grant on their own," Mayor Joseph Carrigan said. "It shows their commitment to the safety of our firefighters, while keeping the cost burden away from our local taxpayer."
In the past two years, the ERFD has received over $250,000 in federal grant money, competing with over 20,000 fire departments nationwide. According to grant coordinator and ex-chief James Carrigan, the process of applying for the federal grants takes many man-hours. "Preparation of our grant application is a time-consuming process, consisting of several hundred hours of research, writing and reviewing," Carrigan said. "These grants are written by our firefighters for the safety of our firefighters.
"The ERFD has also applied for two additional competitive DHS grants, which we are awaiting the results of," Carrigan continued. He identified them as the 2005 DHS Assistance to Firefighter Grant and the 2005 DHS Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response Grant.
