Salem Fire Department Receives Grant For Bi-Lingual Fire Safety Education Program

Teaching fire prevention from an early age will pay off for a lifetime

Salem-News.com

(SALEM) - The Salem Fire Department has been awarded a $125,000 grant from FEMA to create a bi-lingual fire and life safety education program. The grant will allow the department to provide new tools that will help reach the Salem-area Hispanic community.

The Salem-Keizer School District says that over twenty-five percent of the children in the district are Hispanic. Alfredo Mendez, a fire suppression graduate, has been hired to get the program started and is starring in a children`s fire safety video designed for K through 2ND graders delivered in the Spanish culture.

The grant will also help the department purchase a fire safety trailer that will be used to promote fire safety education during community events.