Across the nation Fire Departments are facing shortages in staff. The city of Jackson is taking steps to solve the issue with a million dollar grant awarded to them by the Department of Homeland Security. They were chosen to receive this grant because they are so short staffed they have to combine efforts with other departments to put out most house fires. This shortage is impacting response times and firefighter safety. “It’s created a lot of new challenges for us to figure out different ways to get the same thing accomplished with less resources,” said Fire Chief David Wooden. Often the Jackson Fire Department has to call firefighters after their work day is done to get more bodies.