6 Ottawa firefighters sworn in

The Ottawa Fire Department recently hired six new firefighters who were sworn-in Tuesday.

The new firefighters are Maxwell Biesack, Joe Ellena, James McGuire, Conner Sherwood, Reid Smith and Kevin Stewart.

Five of the six along with four more recently hired firefighters will be attending the University of Illinois Fire Academy beginning next week, according to the Ottawa Fire Department.

This past summer, the Ottawa Fire Department was awarded a $731,849 federal grant to hire more staff in response to the closure of Spring Valley and Peru hospitals.