JERSEYVILLE – Jerseyville firefighters are getting brand-new breathing equipment after securing over $170,000 in grant funds from FEMA.
Fire Chief Keith Norman Norman said the department’s previous SCBAs, or Self-Contained Breathing Apparatuses, were out of date by more than two decades.
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“Our SCBAs, our breathing air systems, were five generations behind,” Norman said. “They stopped making them in the ‘80s, so they are more than 25 years outdated.”
To help replace this vital equipment, the Jerseyville Fire Department was awarded $171,428 through the Assistance to Firefighters Grants Program from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).
“We got special pricing through a federal contract and were awarded $171,428, which is 95%” of the cost to replace the equipment, Norman said. “So we’re going to be able to replace all of the 25-year-old SCBAs for a cost of $8,500.”
The grant was officially awarded by FEMA on Sept. 22, 2026, one week before Norman made the announcement at the Sept. 29, 2026 Jerseyville City Council meeting.
