North Reading F.D. Awarded $7,430 in State Fire Safety Grants

House Minority Leader Bradley H. Jones, Jr. (R-North Reading) and Senate Minority Leader Bruce Tarr (R-Gloucester) joined with the Baker-Polito Administration this week to announce the North Reading Fire Department has been awarded $7,430 in state grants to provide fire safety outreach to local students and older residents.

North Reading will receive $4,575 as part of the Student Awareness of Fire Education (S.A.F.E.) program, which the fire department will use to partner with the local school system to teach fire safety. Another $2,855 has been allocated to the department under the Senior SAFE program, which will help fund fire safety presentations for local seniors and assist them with smoke and carbon monoxide alarm installations and battery replacements.

“The S.A.F.E. program and the Senior SAFE program have proven to be highly effective in raising awareness of fire prevention among the state’s school-age children and older residents,” said Representative Jones. “With this grant funding, the North Reading Fire Department will be able to continue to impart valuable lessons to some of the town’s most vulnerable citizens on how they can ensure their own personal safety and the safety of their loved ones in the event of a fire.”

“The House and Senate supports the S.A.F.E. program to help save lives and prevent tragedies,” said Senator Tarr. “I am confident that the funding will help serve the families in North Reading well because school children will have access to the lessons taught by firefighters.”

Since 1996, the S.A.F.E. program has provided state funding to municipal fire departments on an annual basis to promote fire safety education in schools. Eight years ago, Massachusetts launched the Senior SAFE program to support fire safety training for seniors, who are considered among the most at-risk groups for dying in a fire. Both programs are administered by the Massachusetts Department of Fire Services within the state’s Executive Office of Public Safety and Security.

According to the Department of Fire Services, the average number of children dying in fires annually has dropped by 78% since the S.A.F.E. program began. This represents a decline that is almost 30% greater than the decline in fire deaths overall.

“Fire safety education works,” said Secretary of Public Safety and Security Terrence Reidy. “The S.A.F.E. and Senior SAFE grant programs allow trained and trusted firefighters to make a direct connection with youngsters and older adults in their own communities. These grants are an outstanding example of state and local partnerships.”

“The fire departments delivering these safety messages are reducing the risk of fire, injury, and tragedy in cities and towns across the Commonwealth,” added State Fire Marshal Peter J. Ostroskey. “No child has died in a Massachusetts fire since March of 2019, and fire deaths overall continue to trend downward. Programs like S.A.F.E. and Senior SAFE are among the reasons Massachusetts ranks as one of the most fire-safe states in the nation.”

A total of $1.8 million in grants is being distributed to 234 municipal fire departments across Massachusetts in the latest round of funding.