Ohio Fire Marshal gives $174K in grants to local fire departments for radio equipment

Fire blazes out of control and completely destroys a 2-story home located at 1250 US-68 South in Xenia Township early Saturday morning. Arriving fire crews requested mutual -aid assistance tanker trucks from nearby departments Heavy flames consumed the entire structure and crews were forced to go on a defensive attack. The home was total loss

Credit: Charles Caperton

Credit: Charles Caperton

Fire blazes out of control and completely destroys a 2-story home located at 1250 US-68 South in Xenia Township early Saturday morning. Arriving fire crews requested mutual -aid assistance tanker trucks from nearby departments Heavy flames consumed the entire structure and crews were forced to go on a defensive attack. The home was total loss

Ohio Fire Marshal Kevin S. Reardon announced the recipients of the2021 Multi-Agency Radio Communications Systems grants, giving 35 fire departments in the Dayton area a total of just over $174,000 to pay to connect to the radio communication system.

In total, the grants were given to 373 fire departments in 65 counties across the state, according to a release from the Ohio Department of Commerce.

In the release, the state said that MARCS allows first responders to communicate both to each other and to other agencies responding to an incident, such as law enforcement or neighboring fire departments.

The radios can be expensive, though, with the State Fire Marshal’s office saying that for 2021 it received more than $9 million in requests, while they only had $3 million in funding.

The office said priority was given to departments applying as part of a regional or county-wide effort, as well as those that proved they were ready to start using the MARCS equipment immediately.

Locally, grants ranged from just over $700 to over $40,000.

Below is a list of local fire departments that received grants and the amounts of the grants, by county:

Champaign

  • Mechanicsburg Fire Department: $2,040.00
  • Urbana Fire Division: $1,920.00
  • Adams Township-Rosewood Fire Department: $3,000.00
  • Christiansburg Fire Company: $1,200.00
  • Northeast Champaign County Fire District: $3,420.00
  • JSP Joint Fire District: $2,520.00

Clark

  • Pitchin-Green Township Fire Department: $32,828.00
  • Enon Mad River Township Fire & EMS: $5,916.57
  • Hustead Fire Department: $40,038.40

Darke

  • Ansonia Fire Department: $1,440.00
  • Arcanum Fire Department: $1,320.00
  • Greenville Fire Department: $1,920.00
  • Hollansburg Fire Department: $2,160.00
  • Pitsburg Fire Department: $2,880.00
  • Rossburg Fire Department: $1,680.00
  • Union City Fire Department: $2,880.00
  • Versailles Fire Department: $1,680.00
  • Liberty Township Volunteer Fire Department: $2,040.00
  • Gettysburg Rural Fire Department: $1,440.00
  • New Madison Fire Department: $2,880.00
  • North Star Community Fire Department: $2,040.00
  • Osgood Community Volunteer Fire Department: $1,920.00
  • Greenville Township Emergency Services: $1,920.00

Greene

  • Fairborn Fire Department: $10,000.00
  • Cedarville Township Volunteer Fire Department: $10,000.00
  • Xenia Township Fire Department: $10,000.00
  • Sugarcreek Township Fire Department: $10,000.00

Preble

  • Camden-Somers Township Fire & Rescue $1,920.00
  • Gasper Township Fire & Rescue $2,160.00
  • Eldorado Fire Department $720.00
  • Gratis Volunteer Fire Department $720.00
  • Lewisburg Fire Department $1,320.00
  • Northwest Fire & Ambulance $2,640.00
  • Verona Fire Department $1,080.00
  • West Alexandria Fire Department $2,400.00

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