Recently, our Southaven Fire Department received the outstanding news that our federal grant application for FEMA’s Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) program was approved, which will net the City $1,564,323 to be used to hire 12 new firefighters.  This award was only granted to three Mississippi cities (Biloxi and Clinton) and is the largest of such granted in the state.  This is a highly competitive grant process and speaks highly of Fire Chief Roger Thornton, Fire-Life Safety Educator Malena Alderman, and the rest of our department expressing the confidence that we will use the funding efficiently to improve public safety in our city.

The City must apply matching funds of 25% in years one and two and 65% in year three to complete our funding requirements for this program.  The timing of this grant coincides perfectly with the City’s need and plan to prepare and staff Fire Station #5 which is projected to be built within the next 4 years.  These additional personnel will allow us to operate a “double company” at Station #4 until the new station is constructed to improve our service immediately to the southernmost part of our city.