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Warner Robins Police Department tests 20 new applicants

Applicants had to run a timed obstacle course, which included dragging a weighted dummy 10 yards

UPDATE: Tuesday, 1:30 p.m.

Jennifer Parson, spokesperson with the Warner Robins Police Department said 11 applicants passed the decision making assessment Monday afternoon.

They will receive provisional offers this week, but will still have to be interviewed, undergo a background check, psychiatric evaluation and physical exam.

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One of the first steps to becoming a Warner Robins police officer is the physical agility test.

Monday morning 20 applicants toed the starting line.

This comes after Warner Robins Police Cheif Brett Evans was given 60 days to hire 10 new officers.

RELATED: Warner Robins chief given 60 days to hire 10 officers, some council members say

"We have been short for some time now, several years, 20 years if we really want to be serious about it," said Jennifer Parson, spokesperson with WRPD.

RELATED: WRPD staffing numbers see little change over 30 days

Those 20 test takers are part of a larger-than-usual applicant class to take on the course.

To pass the test, they needed to clear several obstacles and drag a weighted dummy about 10 yards in less than a minute.

Parson said 20 applicants was great, but there could have been more runners on the course Monday.

"37 people signed up, 20 of them actually showed up," Parson said.

That means only about 54 percent of people who applied even made it to the obstacle course.

Three of the people who showed up failed the test, which means 85 percent of the class advanced to the next stage of the hiring process.

According to the numbers, getting to the course was a bigger hurdle than the actual physical obstacles.

"You can get people to sign up to come out here and say they're going to run the physical agility test," Parson said. "Now whether they show up or not is a big step."

Parson says she's optimistic the 17 who passed could become a lot of new hires for the department.

But the obstacle course is only the first test in the hiring process.

The applicants who passed the physical agility test spent the afternoon undergoing another assessment that tests their decision making skills.

Parson says those who pass that test should receive a provisional offer as early as this week.

Parson says even though applicants receive a provisional offer, they still have to pass several more tests, including a background check and psychological examination, before they can officially join the force.

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