Southern Ohio Fire Departments Awarded Volunteer Fire Assistance Grants

COLUMBUS – State Representative Jason Stephens (R-Kitts Hill) is pleased to announce that fire departments across Gallia, Jackson and Lawrence Counties were recently awarded funding through the Volunteer Fire Assistance (VFA) grant program, totaling more than $70,915 in support.

Funding will be used towards critical resources, such as MARCS communications devices, wildfire suppression tools, and rescue supplies. The breakdown per county is as follows:

• Gallia - $36,660.60
• Jackson - $21,122.58
• Lawrence - $13,132.23
   

“These grants will be helpful to 11 fire departments throughout House District 93,” said Stephens. “I’m pleased to support this initiative to assist our volunteer firefighters and the great work they do to help our communities.”

Overall, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Forestry approved grant funding for 95 projects totaling more than $593,000 for fire departments in rural areas of Ohio. VFA grants are directed to rural fire departments composed of at least 80% volunteer firefighters that serve communities with populations of less than 10,000 people within the ODNR Forestry wildfire protection area.