By Mark LaFlamme,Staff Writer

AUBURN – For four years, fire Chief Wayne Werts has been asking the federal government for $400,000 to pay for a new fire engine. For three years, he has been denied.

On Thursday, the chief learned he’ll be getting a grant after all, but not for money to pay for equipment. Instead, the Department of Homeland Security has awarded the Fire Department a $28,150 grant for fire prevention and safety.

“We’re glad to get it, don’t get me wrong,” Werts said. “It’s going to be very helpful to us.”

The money will be used for its juvenile fire-setter intervention program, an educational campaign run by Fire Prevention Officer Gary Simard. None of the funds will be used toward a new firetruck, and no federal grant for that will be forthcoming.

“We’ve already been told we’re not getting it this year, either,” Werts said.

Why Auburn cannot come up with a grant for a new truck is somewhat of a mystery. A spokeswoman from U.S. Sen. Susan Collins’ office has said only that there is a lot of competition for the grant money.

In recent years, $3 million in federal funds has been doled out to 37 fire, rescue and ambulance departments in Maine. Auburn has received nothing.

“We’re only going to beat our heads against that wall for so long,” he said of the yearly attempt to coax grant money out of the Department of Homeland Security.

The City Council has agreed to help with a down payment on a new truck to replace an aging engine with 120,000 miles on it. The Auburn Fire Department still needs to replace a second fire engine, but without federal help, it likely won’t happen.

In a news release from Sens. Collins and Olympia Snowe announcing the $28,150 grant, the senators stated: “It is crucial that Maine’s first responders receive the financial support they need to keep our state safe…”

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