SUMMIT COUNTY, OHIO—Earlier this month, the Summit County Emergency Management Agency was awarded $636,612 in Homeland Security grants for eight regional projects. These grants are designed to enhance the capacity of state and local jurisdictions to prevent, prepare for, respond to, and recover from incidents of terrorism involving chemical, biological, nuclear or explosive weapons and cyberattacks. Under the leadership of Summit County Executive Ilene Shapiro, Summit County EMA is the fiscal agent for Ohio Homeland Security Region 5 law enforcement agencies and assists the agencies in finalizing and prioritizing grant requests. The region includes 13 counties in Northeast Ohio.
Of the eight total awards, five are for Summit County law enforcement agencies. Summit County EMA collaborated with Akron, Bath and Springfield police departments and the Summit County Sheriff to secure a combined $501,199 in grants for projects including mass casualty and fatality management, bomb robot replacement, heavy equipment rigging specialist training and emergency communications interoperability equipment.
“Collaboration is key to public safety and preparedness. Each year, my EMA team coordinates with several regional law enforcement agencies to secure this critical funding. Together, we are keeping Summit County and our entire region safe from threats,” said Executive Shapiro.
