The Urbana Fire Division seeks to fill two firefighter/paramedic positions funded through a federal grant.

Urbana Fire Chief Mark Keller requested authorization from the Urbana Civil Service Commission during its meeting Wednesday to proceed with the hiring process for entry level firefighter positions.

Keller said the division received a Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response (SAFER) grant provided by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. The grant is expected to provide funding for at least two years contingent on the division maintaining its staffing at 23 people.

The division previously received the grant in 2010.

The grant total is for $305,232, according to information Keller provided to the commission.

The city will begin accepting applications on Aug. 24 and the deadline for applications is 4 p.m. on Sept. 25. Applications may be obtained at the city’s human resource office, located on the top floor at 205 S. Main St., or on the city’s website (urbanaohio.com).

Among the requirements and qualifications, each candidate must be a U.S. citizen, be between the ages of 18 and 69 at the time of testing, be a high school graduate or have a GED, have vision correctable to 20/20, have a valid driver’s license, have no felony convictions, and have no first degree misdemeanor traffic conviction within the previous three years.

Candidates must complete a written aptitude test, physical agility test, physical condition test and background check.

In addition to approving the fire/paramedic hiring process, the commission approved establishing two patrol officer eligibility lists.

During the June meeting, the commission approved the announcement of a patrol officer position opening for the Urbana Police Division.

Following up on the application process, Urbana Police Lt. Seth King said Wednesday the division received 55 applicants and 40 people showed up for testing. King said 18 applicants were left following the testing.

The commission approved the certified eligibility list and the five candidates on the list in order of highest to lowest scores are Cody L. Rodgers, Evan J. Cropp, Joshua D. Elliott, Cade R. Hunt and Casey N. Evans. The commission also approved the eligibility list, which contained 18 candidates.