Milford Fire Department's utility truck parked in front of the station September 3, 2021. Credit: Sawyer Loftus / BDN

The Milford Fire Department has been awarded nearly $100,000 from the federal government to install a sprinkler system at its station.

The town’s fire department is receiving the $95,238 grant from the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Assistance to Firefighters program. It will be used to safeguard millions of dollars worth of equipment and records stored in the attached town office, Chief Josh Mailman said.

“We’ve read stories of firefighters going on call and coming back to their own departments on fire,” he said. “We feel it’s very important to lead by example and try to promote fire safety.”

A firefighter can be cooking something on the stove in one moment, a call can come in the next moment, and the burner stays on as firefighters rush to respond, Mailman said.

The Milford municipal building was built in the late 1970s and could use some other upgrades, but sprinklers are a good start, Mailman said. There are always two people in the station.

Sawyer Loftus is an investigative reporter at the Bangor Daily News. A graduate of the University of Vermont, Sawyer grew up in Vermont where he worked for Vermont Public Radio, The Burlington Free Press...