The city of Marion has been awarded an $830,000 grant to hire six more firefighters, according to the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
City officials were notified Wednesday that the city was awarded $830,346.60 over three years from the Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response, or SAFER, Grant, said Marion City Fire Chief Chuck Deem.
The money will bring the Marion City Fire Department's staffing levels from 57 to 63 and will allow the city to staff an emergency squad at each of the city's three fire stations, Deem said. Currently, the fire department has two emergency squads stationed at the city's main fire station.
"That should reduce response times for each district," Deem said.