Newport Family Donates $250K To The City's Fire Department

NEWPORT, RI — The Newport Fire Department received a significant gift from a local family that will help the city bolster its emergency response fleet.

Newport residents George and Susan Petrovas donated $250,000 to the city's fire department, city officials said Wednesday. City officials said the money will help pay for a new ambulance and help expedite the scheduled replacement of one of the large apparatus engines.

"We are all fortunate to live in one of the most beautiful places in the world so anything we can do to continually improve our community and the well-being of all should be encouraged," George Petrovas said.

City officials said the ambulance is being purchased to replace the Newport Fire Department’s second primary rescue that runs out of Fire Station 2 on Old Fort Road. The fire department staffs two full-time rescues and has a third rescue cross-staffed when needed.

City Councilors approved the purchase of a Horton Type 1 rescue at their Sept. 13th meeting at a cost of $418,990.

Once ordered, the new ambulance will take 28 months to be built and delivered, city officials said. The Petrovas family's donation will be used to supplement over half the purchase price

"The Petrovas family’s generous donation is a substantial investment not only in the city and its fire department, but also an investment in the continued delivery the highest quality of care to the city's residents and guests that require prehospital emergency medical treatment and transportation," Newport Fire Chief Harp Donnelly said.

The Petrovas family said they made the donation public to encourage similar community targeted donations to potentially help support the variety of city Departments, services and organizations.

"Many people are just too busy and caught up with the day-to-day activities, that it is challenging to stop and appreciate what we have in terms of support for our health and well-being," George Petrovas said. "Improvement is always needed, so we encourage people to pick an organization they like to help and call them to offer support in any way possible."

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