The city of Butler is moving forward with plans to hire additional firefighters thanks to a federal grant awarded last year.
The over $600,000 SAFER Grant- which stands for Staffing For Adequate Fire and Emergency Response- allows the city partial reimbursement for four additional positions over a three-year period beginning Feb. 2.
Hiring four additional firefighters would put five on each shift (instead of the four that are required) so any call-offs would not automatically result in overtime expenses.
The city has already budgeted local match funds for this grant but needs to have the firefighters in place to collect the full amount of the grant.
Current part-time firefighters are expected to be offered the chance to become temporary full-time employees. Testing will also be offered on Jan. 31 for part and full-time positions.
The city currently employs 16 full-time firefighters.