Federal grant will bring more firefighters to Lake Pleasant

July 11, 2012

The Peoria Fire Department will receive a $930,000 federal grant to hire and train firefighters to staff Lake Pleasant.

The grant will allow Peoria to hire six additional firefighters to staff Lake Pleasant around the clock. Right now only a few firefighters are stationed at the lake during daylight hours. The two-year grant covers 100 percent of the personnel costs for the fire crews.

After that, the city plans to absorb the costs into its budget.

Firefighters will also have a new fire boat and equipment to provide coverage on the lake. The boat, trailer and support equipment were purchased with another grant from the Tohono O'odham Nation.

The additional crews are scheduled to be hired in the fall and begin providing service early next year.