This month marks the 20th anniversary of our Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program (AFG). The program, which also includes Staffing for Adequate Emergency Response (SAFER) and Fire Prevention and Safety (FP&S) grants, was authorized by Congress to provide federal funding directly to local fire departments and emergency organizations. Since its inception, AFG’s mission has remained the same: Help firefighters and first responders obtain the equipment, training and other resources necessary to protect the public and emergency personnel from fire and related hazards. 

AFG is a profoundly important program. Over the past 20 years, it has provided recipients with more than 79,000 individual awards, totaling more than $12 billion. Read more about AFG Success Stories. Here are a few highlights:

• The UL Fire Safety Research Institute uses grants to conduct large-scale experiments to study residential fire dynamics and improve firefighting tactics.  
• The National Center for Atmospheric Research put its funding toward creating a computer model that predicts how weather and topography can affect wildfire spread.  
• The Firefighter Cancer Cohort Study launched a long-term project looking at how to reduce the risk of firefighter exposure to carcinogenic smoke and chemicals.  

Watch this space at the start of each week throughout June and help FEMA and its Grant Programs Directorate celebrate AFG and its many recipients! 

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SHARE YOUR SUCCESS STORY

Do you have a Success Story regarding a FEMA Grant that you’d like to share with everyone? Contact us at: firegrants@fema.dhs.gov, or through Twitter @FEMAGrants using a direct message.

AFGP Home Page: https://www.fema.gov/grants/preparedness/firefighters
AFG Regional Representatives: https://www/fema.gov/grants/preparedness/firefighters/regional-contacts
AFGP Help Desk: E-mail: firegrants@fema.dhs.gov
AFGP Telephone Toll-Free: 1-866-274-0960