Battalion Chief John Gribbin has been in contact with FEMA and said the agency told him to expect a decision soon on the grant that could be worth close to $13 million over two years.
"I've been told maybe sometime in the third week of Jan. I should hear something, one way or another," he told the newspaper. "We have no promise of anything at this point. To make it this far in the review process, it's not a bad thing, but there are a few more reviews to go through."
The layoffs were scheduled to take place on Jan. 5 after notices were issued to the firefighters on Dec. 17.
Since the grant application requires a threat of impending job losses, the city couldn't call off the layoffs while it waited for the news.
The city applied to the state Civil Service Commission for an extension and on Wednesday was given a new date of Feb. 7.
"Words cannot describe what it was like when these guys got notifications saying the layoffs were postponed," Acting Fire Director Leonard Carmichael told the newspaper. "It was very emotional."
