Edinburg Township

EDINBURG TOWNSHIP FIRE DEPARTMENT RECEIVES $229,334 THROUGH FY 2006 ASSISTANCE TO FIREFIGHTERS GRANT AWARD FROM U.S. DEPARTMENT OF HOMELAND SECURITY

Today, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security awarded a $229,334 Assistance to Firefighters Grant (AFG) program award to the Edinburg Township Fire Department.

This regional grant will benefit a total of seven Portage County Fire Departments including Atwater, Brimfield, Deerfield, Edinburg, Palmyra, Paris and Randolph Townships. With this grant we will be able to expound on a communications grant received by the Ravenna Township Fire Department in 2004. FireCom Center, a division of the Ravenna Township Fire Department, was totally rebuilt including three new repeaters and antennas located in Brimfield, Palmyra Townships and the third being placed at the former O.D.O.T. building in Ravenna.

This type of regional grant, until today, has never been successful in Portage County. This will directly improve fire department communications for the seven participating departments and ultimately improving service to the 29,083 residents served by these seven townships that cover 170 square miles of southern Portage County.

This grant covers 90% of the total cost of the project which is $254,815, each township is responsible for 10% of the costs of their purchases.

Due to the highly competitive nature of the AFG, more than 18,000 applications, totaling close to $2.5 billion in grant requests, were received for FY2006 with only $485 million in funds available.

"Today is a great day in Portage County Fire Department history"

The Edinburg Township Fire Department now has a new life saving tool.  Pettigrew Feed & Hardware, Inc. donated a Shindaiwa Rescue Saw to the department recently.  Chief Tim Paulus says “the support provided by the Pettigrew family over the years has been a much appreciated asset and contributor to its community.”  The gasoline powered saw will be used in both rescue and fire fighting operations.  The saw can cut steel, concrete and wood making it an invaluable tool to the fire and rescue industry.  Assets like the Pettigrew family are what make Edinburg Township such a great place to work, live and raise a family.  The Edinburg Township Fire Department would like to thank the Pettigrew family for their generous contribution to the department and its community.

^{* Pictured Left to Right: Tom Repcik, Lonnie Pettigrew, Chief Paulus, Melissa Whitley, and Nathan Pettigrew.}