Congressman McHenry Announces $48,000 Homeland Security Grant to Lawndale Fire Department in Cleveland County
U.S. Department of Homeland Security awards SAFER funds to local department

The grant will go to the Lawndale Fire Department in Cleveland County, and comes in the twenty-first round of the FY 2012 Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant awards.  SAFER was established to assist local fire departments to increase their staffing and deployment capabilities in order to respond to emergencies whenever they may occur.  Local departments applied for the grants, and the program is administered by the Grant Programs Directorate of the Federal Emergency Management Agency in cooperation with the U.S. Fire Administration. 

According to Lawndale Assistant Fire Chief Steven McMurry, the SAFER funds will be used to establish a mileage reimbursement program for department volunteers. 

“Communities like Lawndale have been hard hit in recent years by the loss of textile jobs,” said Congressman McHenry.  “This SAFER Grant will assist the Lawndale Fire Department in retaining and recruiting volunteers to maintain a superior level of fire protection for the citizens of Lawndale.”

Lawndale is the first Tenth District department to receive SAFER funding in this fiscal cycle.  Grants will continue to be announced in rounds weekly through the coming months.