The grant will support the Vancouver Fire Marshal’s Project Home Safe campaign to reduce the frequency and severity of residential fires through fire and life safety education and outreach

VANCOUVER – The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has awarded the city of Vancouver’s Fire Marshal’s Office a $207,000 fire prevention and safety grant. The grant will support the Vancouver Fire Marshal’s Project Home Safe campaign to reduce the frequency and severity of residential fires through fire and life safety education and outreach. 

This is the eighth FEMA grant the Vancouver Fire Marshal’s Office has received since 2012, totaling approximately $1.5 million in federal grant funding the has received for community risk reduction efforts. 

“Project Home Safe unites zero fire ignition strategies that focus on stopping a fire before it happens to reactionary fire safety education like fire escape planning, free home safety surveys and smoke alarm installation,” said Vancouver Fire Marshal Heidi Scarpelli.  

The Fire Marshal’s Office launched Project Home Safe in 2015. As part of the community education effort, Vancouver deputy fire marshals and Fire Corps volunteers go door to door showing residents simple ways to reduce the risk of home fires. The program has reached more than 12,000 Vancouver households since it began.  

FEMA’s Fire Prevention and Safety grants support projects that enhance the safety of the public and firefighters from fire and related hazards. The primary goal is to reduce injury and prevent death among high-risk populations. 

“I am so grateful to FEMA and our city council for supporting this important and meaningful program,” said Scarpelli. “Preventing fires before they start is one of the cornerstones of our fire department’s mission.”

About the Vancouver Fire Marshal’s Office

The mission of the city of Vancouver’s Fire Marshal’s Office is to protect life and property by preventing emergencies before they happen. This is done through education, enforcement of fire, building and life safety codes, investigation of fire causes and the application of adopted codes to construction projects. View a home fire prevention checklist at www.cityofvancouver.us/PreventHomeFires.  

Information provided by city of Vancouver.