The Northeast Champaign Fire District will be able to fill a firefighter position that had been vacant since 2010, after learning it will receive a $73,000 federal grant.

The agency was notified recently that it will receive the funding through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s SAFER grant program. The Staffing for Adequate Fire and Emergency Response grant program can be used to cover the cost of salaries, benefits and general equipment needs for two years.

The fire district had applied for the grant several months ago, said Chuck Keeran, chief for the fire district.

It will cover the cost to fill a full-time firefighter position that has been vacant since 2010, Keeran said. The fire district’s board members have not yet officially been notified that the fire district was awarded the grant. It will be up to the board members to decide whether to fill the vacancy with one full-time or two part-time firefighters, Keeran said.

The department includes a mix of full and part-time staff. The grant will allow the fire district to staff a total of four full-time positions, along with one supervisor. It will cover the salary and benefits of one full-time position for two years.

“Firefighters put their lives on the line each day to keep our communities safe,” said U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, whose office announced the grant in a news release. “These new federal resources will help ensure that Champaign County has the skilled responders needed. With so many communities already facing budget shortfalls, critical federal efforts like SAFER are pivotal in keeping our Ohio cities, towns and villages safe.”

The city of Urbana currently uses the SAFER program to cover the cost of two firefighters. The city received a two-year $285,735 grant in 2011, which is expected to expire in March next year.

The city didn’t use all of the money, said Mark Keller, chief of the Urbana Fire Division. The city will likely file for an extension of the grant, which will cover those positions until June. At that point, the city will have to pick up the cost of those positions or the firefighters will have to be laid off.