Two Central Coast fire departments have been awarded new wildfire safety funding grants.
The City of San Luis Obispo Fire Department received $14,620 and the Lompoc Fire Department received $20,000. The funding will be used to complete vegetation management work and purchase personal protective equipment.
"We were fortunate enough — we applied for the grant they gave us $20,000 and we were able to basically outfit our entire department with updated wildland PPE," said Lompoc Battalion Chief Scott Nunez.
This is the sixth year the California Fire Foundation (CFF) and the PG&E Corporation Foundation have presented these grants to help communities bolster their disaster preparedness and response programs.
“All of us must work together to combat California’s growing wildfire threat, exacerbated by climate change. We’re grateful for the opportunity to continue supporting the California Fire Foundation and help fund these local fire departments in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara Counties to make us all better prepared and more resilient against disasters like wildfires,” said Teresa Alvarado, PG&E South Bay and Central Coast Regional Vice President.
“The City of San Luis Obispo Fire Department is incredibly thankful for the grant funding provided by the California Fire Foundation and PG&E Foundation. These dollars are going directly into a hazardous fuel removal project that will help protect our community from wildfire. Additionally, the grant provided wildfire preparedness resources to better reach our Spanish-speaking community members,” said San Luis Obispo City Fire Chief Todd Tuggle.
The Gonzales Fire Department, North County Fire Protection District and the American Lung Association also received grants.
