NATCHEZ, Miss. - The City of Natchez must hire more firefighters to avoid a drop in its fire insurance rating.

The Natchez Democrat reports that the Mississippi State Rating Bureau notified the city last month that the city's fire protection no longer warrants its current rating: five on a scale of one to 10.

When ratings drop, residents' insurance rates can go up.

A tight city budget has prevented the hiring of all the needed firefighters so far.

Mayor Darryl Grennell plans to schedule a meeting in Jackson with representatives from the bureau and the Mississippi Insurance Department to determine steps to prevent a lower rating.

The bureau's superintendent of public protection, Ty Windham, says municipalities generally have a year to make improvements before their ratings are dropped.