Grant helps Conn. fire department hire 8 firefighters

By Susan Misur
The New Haven Register

GUILFORD, Conn. — The U.S. Department of Homeland Security has awarded the Fire Department an $860,000 grant, enabling authorities to hire eight more paid firefighters and meet minimum staff requirements.

This is the fourth time fire officials have applied for the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant, and the first time they've received it. Assistant Fire Chief Wayne Vetre received word this summer that the town was being considered for the funding and said he was optimistic his department would be chosen.

"It was a relief to have it finalized," he said Wednesday. "It's a competitive grant. They have panels, and it (the application) goes through a review process."

First Selectman Carl Balestracci said a recent boating accident near Old Quarry Road, in which one person died and three were injured, shows the town needs more firefighters.

"They had to call extra people in at the beginning because they weren't sure how many people were in the boat and in the water," said Balestracci, who added that Guilford's firefighters are all either emergency medical technicians or paramedics, while some are trained and certified to use the department's rescue boat and are certified divers.

"It's a talented group of first responders," Balestracci said of the Fire Department.

In July, the Fire Commission, Board of Finance and Board of Selectmen each voted in favor of receiving and matching the grant. The town will help pay for the new firefighters and increase financial contributions over a five-year period, while the federal government will pay the sum over four years in decreasing amounts. In the fifth year and beyond, the town will cover all costs of the new firefighters.

Finance Director Sheila Villano said projections show the town contributing about $2.8 million over the next five years.

The town would have hired new firefighters over the next few years even if the grant had not been awarded, and four would have been hired this year if it weren't for budget cuts, Villano said.

Guilford's population requires more full-time manpower in the Fire Department to be compliant with standards of the National Fire Protection Association, according to a study done about five years ago, Vetre said.

He explained that the grants are awarded to departments based on staffing and financial needs, and that he applied last June for the money, which will provide for eight salaries and benefits packages. The department wasn't chosen the past three times for the grant because while its application passed all evaluations, other towns had a more urgent need for the money and funding ran out, Vetre said.

The Fire Commission will now decide on a course of action in recruiting new firefighters based on hiring guidelines that it will receive from Homeland Security. The eight new firefighters could be hired as early as January, Villano said, though the decision will be up to the Fire Commission.

There are currently 24 full-time firefighters in the department, which became a combination paid and volunteer department about eight years ago.

If eight more people are hired, the number of firefighters on each shift will increase from six to eight.

Though there are also 60 volunteer firefighters, some don't have the training to go into burning buildings and serve support roles, Vetre explained. The department still needs volunteers to maintain national standards, he said.

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