Funds to support fire safety education for children and firefighter training for electric vehicles
September 13, 2013 – The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) received the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program – Fire Prevention and Safety Grant (AFG) to support "A School Year of Fire Safety," a project to educate children on fire safety and "Firefighter Training for Electric, Hybrid and Fuel Cell Fleets, Trucks & Buses," a project to educate firefighters on how to respond to incidents involving these vehicles. NFPA will receive $990,000.
"A School Year of Fire Safety," a project led by NFPA’s Public Education Division, will create materials to reach preschool through grade three students. The goals are to focus on high-risk communities, distribute materials using email distribution and evaluate the effectiveness of the project in total. They will create activities that teach important smoke alarm and home escape planning messages. Materials will be available on sparkyschoolhouse.org throughout the 2013-2014 school year and beyond. This educational hub will include a number of key assets including standards-based lesson plans developed by curriculum experts. Curriculum rich music and movement videos will be created to support the lesson plans.
The NFPA Electric Vehicle Safety Training is a nationwide program designed to give emergency response training to firefighters and other first responders in order to prepare for the widespread implementation of electric, hybrid and fuel cell fleet vehicles, trucks and buses on the road in the United States. This training is crucial in preventing potential fatalities and serious injuries on-scene to both responders and victims. The coursework involved with this training is the next step of advanced electric vehicle safety for the fire service and will provide the necessary resources, tasks, and milestones to develop and offer a quality training experience.
"With budget cuts impacting our schools and fire departments nationwide, this grant gives NFPA the opportunity to expand education to children and firefighters and increase the implementation of safer practices," said Lorraine Carli, NFPA vice president of Communications. "NFPA projects made possible by this grant will make communities, and the firefighters who we rely on to protect them, safer."
Visit NFPA’s website for more information on Electric Vehicle Safety Training or public education.
About NFPA’s Electric Vehicle Safety Training Project
NFPA’s Electric Vehicle Safety Training project is a nationwide program to help firefighters, law enforcement and other first responders prepare for the growing number of electric vehicles on the road in the United States. The NFPA project, initiated in 2010 with a $4.4 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy, provides first responders with information they need to most effectively deal with potential emergency situations involving electric vehicles. Visit the Electric Vehicle Safety Training project website.
About the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)
NFPA is a worldwide leader in fire, electrical, building, and life safety. The mission of the international nonprofit organization founded in 1896 is to reduce the worldwide burden of fire and other hazards on the quality of life by providing and advocating consensus codes and standards, research, training, and education. NFPA develops more than 300 codes and standards to minimize the possibility and effects of fire and other hazards. All NFPA codes and standards can be viewed at no cost.
Contact: Lorraine Carli, Public Affairs Office: +1 617 984-7275