Atlantic City To Apply For Firefighter Grant
ATLANTIC CITY, NJ (CBS) – Concerns tonight over the job security of 50 firefighters in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
For the last four years Atlantic City has paid for those firefighters through a Homeland Security grant nick-named "S.A.F.E.R" - Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response.
Late Friday, the firefighters' union and city administration pushed through a deal to reapply for that grant, but with a level of staffing below what the grant requires.
Earlier today, Mayor Don Guardian told Eyewitness News that continuing to use that mechanism doesn't make long term economic sense.
He agrees with state recommendations that Atlantic City only needs about 180 firefighters.
Right now they have 236.
"That's the right-size number. In our financial situation we need to do what's right today," says Guardian.
Any possible layoffs would likely happen at the end of the year.
