South Whidbey Fire/EMS is currently accepting applications to fill a vacancy on its board of fire commissioners.

Position 1 was previously occupied by Adrienne Hawley, who moved out of the district during her term. The unpaid position requires that the commissioner lives within the district of South Whidbey.

Interested candidates have until 5 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 21 to submit a letter of interest to Fire Chief Rusty Palmer. The board of fire commissioners will review the applicants during an executive session and appoint the new commissioner in a public meeting.

Candidates must be at least 18 years old, a U.S. citizen, a registered voter residing in the district and have no felony convictions or contractual conflict of interest with the district.

Fire commissioners must also attend board meetings, which are at 5:30 p.m. on the second Thursday of every month at Bayview Station.

Commissioner positions are staggered, meaning the person chosen could run for election in 2021, but would only be able to serve a two-year term. They could run for a six-year term starting in 2023.

Palmer said the department hopes to have the vacancy filled by Feb. 27, and that several candidates have applied already.