Panama City commissioners approve more than $1.073 million to improve fire department

PANAMA CITY — Local officials took strides on Tuesday to improve public safety by approving more than $1.073 million for the Panama City Fire Department.

In a meeting held at 8 a.m. in the Bay County Government Center, Panama City commissioners approved two ordinances to help the department stay on top of its game. One was to utilize $198,227 in insurance proceeds to repair damage at Station 2 caused by a tornado in January. The other was to use an $874,948 grant to purchase a new fire apparatus and associated equipment.

"Public safety is incredible important, and our fire department and first responders are a key component of that," Commissioner Josh Street said. "We want to have a city that has well-funded police and well-funded fire, so that ultimately we're safe and secure."

According to the meeting's agenda, the money for the tornado repairs was generated by the Florida Municipal Insurance Trust. The grant for the new apparatus came from the U.S. Housing and Urban Development's Community Development Block Grant Program.

The apparatus, which will be housed at Station 3, was purchased to service the residents of Millville.

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For Street, it was a good feeling for the city to get the insurance money needed to fix the station's storm damages. He also noted that with the purchase of the new apparatus, the city will have added three new apparatuses to the department's fleet in the past two and a half years.

"There's been a few months here where we've been without certain ... key pieces (of the station) that we need to make sure the community stays safe," he said. "We're glad to be able to bring that stuff back online."

This article originally appeared on The News Herald: PC officials OK more than $1.073 million to improve fire department