FM Global awards nearly $250K for fire prevention

FM Global, a Lincoln-based company that ranks as one of the world’s largest commercial property insurers, last year awarded $245,000 in fire-prevention grants to help nearly 100 organizations more effectively prevent fire.
FM Global said it made the grants because fire continues to be the leading cause of commercial property damage. The company said that it has given millions of dollars during the past three decades to help fire services and related agencies.
“At FM Global, we believe the majority of property damage is preventable, not inevitable,” Michael Spaziani, manager of the insurer’s fire-prevention grant program, said in a statement.
“Far too often, inadequate budgets prevent those organizations working to prevent fire from being as proactive as they would like. FM Global’s Fire Prevention Grant Program supports organizations that best demonstrate a need for funding.”
Ten fire departments in Rhode Island and Massachusetts benefited from such grants. In the Ocean State, the Bristol Fire Department, East Providence Fire Department, North Kingstown Fire Department, Valley Falls Fire District and West Warwick Fire Department all received grants from the company. In the Bay State, the agencies receiving grants in 2007 were the New Bedford Fire Department, Easthampton Fire Department, Northampton Fire Department and Reading Fire Department.
FM Global administers its grants for a variety of fire prevention, preparedness and control efforts, including pre-fire planning, community education initiatives, professional development and training for firefighters, and arson investigation, to name a few. •
To learn more about FM Global’s Fire Prevention Grant Program or to request a grant application, please visit www.fmglobal.com/grants.