VIDEO: Faced with a firefighter shortage, city officials are meeting Monday in Beloit to discuss potentially hiring eight new probationary firefighters and multiple fire officers and motor pump operators. A wave of retirements and the near-expiration of a federal grant have stretched the Beloit Fire Department thin, which has made some feel uneasy. Even some firefighters are worried that with depleting resources and having to rely on other fire companies on emergency calls, that something bad is bound to happen. If hired, the new firefighters would bring the staff level up to 19 firefighters per shift, which is still slightly below National Fire Protection Association guidelines.