Manchester Fire Department celebrates $3.7 million SAFER Grant

MANCHESTER, N.H. – On Wednesday, local leaders gathered at Fire Station 5 on Webster Street to celebrate a $3.7 million FEMA Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) Grant.

Manchester Fire Department Chief Ryan Cashin said that grant will allow the Manchester Fire Department (MFD) to hire 12 new firefighters for three years, with those firefighters being stationed at Station 5 as well as Station 2 on South Main Street and Station 7 on Somerville Street.

The request by the MFD to apply for the grant was initially blocked by the Manchester Board of Mayor and Aldermen (BMA), a decision they later reversed, leading to the announcement of the grant in September.

Cashin thanked U.S. Representative Chris Pappas (D-NH-01) and Manchester Mayor Jay Ruais and the BMA for their support in obtaining this grant, which has only been granted to 18 New Hampshire municipalities since its inception in 2015.

Cashin also thanked several of his colleagues in the Fire Department as well as current Aldermen and former MFD Chiefs Dan Goonan and Jim Burkush, both of whom encouraged him to continue trying for the grant after two previous failed attempts.

“A firefighter’s job is simple: protect the lives and property of this great city. The men and women of the Manchester Fire Department are doing this every day. Today we are providing the one tool that increases their ability to do their job while also providing the safety that they deserve,” said Cashin. “The City of Manchester is growing, evolving and thriving. I am proud to say here today that your Fire Department is better prepared to respond to the city.”

Pappas, who lives nearby and whose family owns the nearby Puritan Restaurant, thanked the MFD for their dedication, which helped once save his business from a major electrical fire.

“Supporting firefighters and first responders should just be basic common sense. This is about providing good services and making sure that we’re promoting public safety,” said Pappas. “That’s good for our economic well-being here in the city of Manchester, it’s good for our business climate too.

Like Cashin, Pappas also thanked Ruais for his efforts to secure the grant.

“I am so damn proud of the Manchester Fire Department and all the work that you do every day. We have so much to be proud of, so much to be thankful for every single day. Our firefighters here in the city risk their lives for us and it’s only right and fitting that we turn around and do everything in our power from a resources standpoint,” he said.

Ruais also returned the compliment to Pappas and Cashin, stating that it was a perfect example of what can happen when federal and local government works together to get things accomplished.

The announcement marked the first time in 20 years that the MFD could hire new firefighters, with Goonan and Burkush noting that over the past four decades, there were many moments when hiring new firefighters would be unthinkable.

“We were just happy to keep what we have, every time went to a budget, we just hoped for the status quo and make it to another year. It was not too long ago that we actually laid off firefighters,” said Goonan. “This job is very labor intensive, so it’s really great to see us adding personnel. I think it’s really going to increase the safety of our city.”