For Immediate Release

Tuesday, Jan. 8, 2019

Contact: Benjamin Paulin
Phone: 781-428-3299
Email: [email protected]

Easton Fire Department Receives Grants to Support Fire Education Programs

EASTON — Chief Kevin Partridge is pleased to announce that the Easton Fire Department has been awarded two grants that will help support the department’s ongoing Student Awareness of Fire Education (S.A.F.E.) programs.

The Massachusetts Department of Fire Services (DFS) awarded the Easton Fire Department grants of $4,354 for its S.A.F.E. Program and an additional $2,600 for its Senior S.A.F.E. Program.

The S.A.F.E. Program is a state initiative designed to provide resources to local fire departments to conduct fire and life safety education programs for children in kindergarten through 12th grade.

The program aims to enable students to recognize fire hazards and teach key safety behaviors that should be used anytime a child comes into contact with a fire. Since the S.A.F.E. program’s inception in 1995, the average annual number of child deaths caused by a fire has fallen by 74 percent in Massachusetts.

Senior S.A.F.E. is a similar program that was created to support fire safety education specifically for older adults, who are most at risk of dying in a fire in Massachusetts. The program builds on the success of the original S.A.F.E. program and helps forge a connection between fire departments and a variety of senior support agencies working in their communities.

The funds will be used to pay for the S.A.F.E. instructors to deliver the program at the town’s schools and to seniors and to purchase educational materials and handouts.

“These funds are vital in helping our department continue our efforts in educating the members of our community about important information that could save someone’s life or prevent injury in the event of a fire,” Chief Partridge said. “Resident safety is one of our top priorities and students and older residents are the most at-risk individuals during a fire. Being able to have our firefighters teach them this life-saving information is something we pride ourselves on and we are thankful to DFS for their support in that regard.”

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