Bloomington Fire Dept. to launch study as part of nearly $100K grant from State Farm

Posted on June 11, 2024
Bloomington Fire Department Public Information Officer Frank Friend visited WJBC’s Afternoon Show, which airs weekdays from 4 -6 p.m. (Photo courtesy: WJBC/File)

By Blake Haas

BLOOMINGTON – Leaders at the Bloomington Fire Department (BFD) want to determine how to prevent at-home falls.

It’s a part of a grant from State Farm that analyzes how fall mitigators could lower fatality rates in the city.

“It’s going to allow me to look at data to say,’ This is exactly why people are falling, and this is what we are doing about it..” Frank Friend, Captian and Public Information Officer at BFD, said on WJBC’s Afternoon Show.

“(The software also shows) exactly why we have the number of apartment fires, and this is what we are doing about it.”

The study is part of a nearly $100,000 grant from State Farm.

The Department also plans to use the grant funds to purchase a new smokehouse simulating extreme weather for school-aged children.

“I believe this is even the first time that the department has received a grant from State Farm,” Friend added. “The software program is part of that grant process. So, it’s not a cost to taxpayers.

We’re actually going to be implementing three big programs over the next 18 months.”

The Department also plans to use the grant funds to purchase a new smokehouse simulating extreme weather for school-aged children.

Blake Haas can be reached at [email protected].

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