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RSPA 15-03
Contacts: Joe Delcambre
Thursday, September 25, 2003
Tel.: (202) 366‑4831
U.S. Department of Transportation Awards Training Grant of $250,000 To the International Association of Fire Fighters
U.S. Transportation Secretary Norman Y. Mineta today
announced today a $250,000 federal grant to the International Association of
Fire Fighters (IAFF) . The grant will be used to provide vital training
resources for instructors who teachingconduct hazardous materials response
training programs.
"President Bush supports the men and women who are first to arrive on the scene
in an emergency,” sSafety is President Bush’s highest transportation priority,”
said Secretary Mineta. “These funds will continue to provide the nation’s
emergency response personnel with the training they need to respond quickly and
appropriately to transportation-related hazardous materials incidents.”
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Research and Special Programs
Administration (RSPA) made the funds available under the Hazardous Materials
Emergency Preparedness (HMEP) Grants Program. The HMEP grants support the
development of emergency response strategies tailored to regional needs and
areis funded through registration fees paid by shippers and carriers of certain
hazardous materials.
In 1995, the IAFF received its first federal grant of $250,000 and trained over
191 fire service instructors. HMEP grants have supported the training of There
have been 266 fire service instructors trained so far this year.
The HMEP program also provides states, territories and Native American tribes
with annual funding to assist inwith emergency planning and training for public-
sector emergency response technicians. More than 1one million emergency
responders and 3,000 local emergency planning committees have received training
or assistance paid for with through funding provided by HMEP grants.
RSPA has public responsibilities to industry and consumers for : safe and
secure movement of hazardous materials to industry and consumers by all
transportation modes, including the nNation’=s pipelines; rapid response to
emergencies by government agencies; training for transportation safety
professionals; and applying science and technology to meet national
transportation needs.
For additional information, go to the RSPA website
http://www.rspa.dot.gov (click on HAZMAT
Safety) or contact Gordon.Delcambre@rspa.dot.gov.
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