City officials will use a $1.8 million federal grant to hire 14 new firefighters for at least two years, officials said Thursday.
The new firefighters will allow every squad in the city to be fully staffed for the first time, fire Chief Chris Adams said. Currently, five fire stations in the city are working with four-man teams on fire trucks when they ideally need five-man teams.
The grant will fill those holes and allow every squad to have five members. The city expects to hire the new recruits on Sept. 30 to begin training, Adams said.
The grant will fund the positions for two years, and then the city will need to decide whether to keep funding the spots.
Mayor Andy Berke said the fact that the department rolled out Quick Response Vehicles in 2015 was a key part of why the city received the grant this year. The SUVs, filled with medical supplies and staffed by two firefighters, help firefighters get to medical calls more quickly.
"Over the last ten years we have applied for this grant from the federal government - and each year it was denied," Berke said. "This year, because of innovation and hard work of the fire department, it was granted."
The hires will raise the total number of firefighters at the department from 411 to 425, Adams said. The new firefighters will go to stations in Hixson, Brainerd, downtown, Lookout Valley and at Enterprise South.
Adams said that having a five-man team should cut down on firefighter fatigue and injuries.
"It makes it safer for the firefighters, it makes it safer for the citizens of Chattanooga, and the federal government is going to pick up the $1.8 million," Adams said. "So we're very happy with that."
Earlier this year, some city council members argued that the 14 positions should be funded in the city's budget. However, the budget was passed without those additions.
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