From the Bensenville Professional Firefighters Association, Local 2968 Facebook page:
Last week, this lone firefighter was protecting the town of Bensenville all by himself for about 20 minutes. Multiple calls needed the attention of 7 out of the 8 staffed firefighters. If the same events last year, it would have been 7 firefighters out of 11, if we were fully staffed for that day. 1 firefighter protecting the residents, instead of a possibility of 4, is a recipe for disaster. If any additional calls were to come in at that time, then the surrounding towns would have had to come into Bensenville, thus increasing the time you’re waiting for an ambulance or fire vehicle. Thankfully, there were no additional emergencies while the firefighter was by himself.
Some misinformation that has been shared is that we are implying if our referendum passes, that this dangerous situation or others like it will NEVER occur. Unfortunately, NO amount of staffing can completely prevent fatalities or prevent fires from destroying property. Increased staffing only DECREASES the PROBABILITY of events like this from occuring. Last year, when fully staffed, we had 11 firefighters on shift. Now, when fully staffed, we have 8 and if the referendum doesn’t pass we could go down to 5 firefighters a day. This INCREASES the chances that Bensenville resources will NOT be available when you call 911. Please vote yes for our referendum so we may increase our staffing back to a maximum of 11 firefighters a day.
Bensenville Professional Firefighters Association, Local 2968 photo
#1 by FFPM24 on December 9, 2020 - 11:37 AM
Already studied – not gonna happen anytime soon. And that wouldnt make sense for addison financially.
#2 by FFPM571 on December 6, 2020 - 5:50 PM
The Addison FD Chief Scott Walker is doing the Chief’s job there as a shared role.. Mike Spain was supposedly asked to retire. I see a Addison/B-ville/ Wood dale… consolidation on the horizon. One of B-ville’s BC just retired and they only appointed a BC into an Acting role.
#3 by harry on December 5, 2020 - 8:18 PM
i am surprized no one has bought the ladder truck or is it still for sale
#4 by Mike on December 5, 2020 - 7:00 PM
Who is the fire chief there now? Didn’t Mike Spain retire?
#5 by FFPM24 on December 5, 2020 - 4:38 PM
He was left back because the ambulance had to take a driver on a full arrest.
Not a union scare tactic when you have a right to work scumbag actively trying reduce manning to 5 guys because that’s what his department (half the size town – half the calls).
#6 by Jim Wilk on October 19, 2020 - 2:21 PM
D51,
I think full consolidations of fire departments are long, hard processes with a lot of moving parts such as politicians, voters and unions. Each having their own obstacles to overcome. I believe the better option is operational consolidations. There are already some good examples with lisle/Darien woodridge;rolling meadows/ palatine/ palatine rural; and the west suburban fire alliance to name few. In each of these examples, the departments/districts remained separate departments/districts while combining resources in a more efficient manor. I would take it one step further and combine fire stations were municipal/district boundaries made each establish fire stations close to one another.
.
Dan,
Having 3-4 fire departments responding in the suburbs is not much different than having 3-4 different Chicago stations responding as most Chicago neighborhoods are the same size as suburban towns. They were just consolidated when these neighborhoods were annexed into Chicago.
#7 by The DH on October 19, 2020 - 11:00 AM
FF51, never say never. Look at Indianapolis, they have acquired multiple townships and merged departments successfully. If it is desired, it can happen…
#8 by Dan on October 19, 2020 - 1:34 AM
Shemp, they do have 1 paid on call person, according to their web site, so, that may have been him.
Or he might missed getting on a truck or engine when the calls came in.
Or it’s possible he runs a utility truck.
Or he might be an imposter the union set up.
#9 by Shemp on October 19, 2020 - 12:09 AM
Maybe I’m stupid, but why was 1 ff left behind? Does BFD run a one-man company? Put him as extra guy on an engine.
Simple answer would be in that scenario COQ for ambulance and engine, especially if BFD companies expect to be committed for a while. If it becomes a regular necessity, there’s a problem. Then surrounding FDs could be short apparatus and personnel. No easy answers.
#10 by FF51 on October 18, 2020 - 4:38 PM
Michael M, there is WAY more involved in consolidating than just fire chief’s pride. You’d have to get 28 (give or take) fire departments, all with different union contracts, different salaries and benefits, different health/dental/vision/life insurance, different worker’s comp insurance, and different SOPs/SOGs all on the same page. I think it’s safe to say a DuPage consolidation will never happen.
#11 by harry on October 18, 2020 - 3:44 PM
clark i doubt bensenville would call elk grove village especially because egv is likely hellping wooddale more
#12 by Clark on October 18, 2020 - 2:06 PM
They’ll just call Elk Grove like everyone else does!
#13 by Michael m on October 17, 2020 - 6:25 PM
Bottom line, whether it is Bensenville, Limestone or Peoria. People need to understand services cost money. My guess is the tax increase is more likely to pass in Peoria now since there was a uproar over closing Station 20 in North Peoria. From what i have read it sounds like the citizens really raised a stink in order to save Station 20.
Everyone is correct in saying that other communities should not continuously support another community. Consolidation is really the only option. DuPage county fire chiefs should drop their pride and allow for a formal DuPage County Fire Department to be formed. This way the cost is spread over everyone who lives in DuPage county instead of one community. Personally I don’t know why they chose to sell their 2017 aerial ladder, instead of taking one of their engines out of service and selling the engine.
#14 by Dan on October 17, 2020 - 3:16 PM
These comments are laughable.
If you read the posts on this blog, many of the fires in the suburbs have 2,3,or even 4 different fire departments respond on the first alarm. That is the norm nowadays in most of the country.
But this is same old tired scare tactics used the firefighters union.
#15 by Jim Wilk on October 17, 2020 - 12:44 PM
FFPM571,
What if the referendum never passes? Is mutual aid the answer in perpetuity? Can mutual aid partners also cut staffing and use the same reason? My point is alternatives do exist that should be looked into rather than relying on mutual aid. If the taxpayers can’t fund a service to the level they want, then the level of service changes or how that service is provided changes. It sounds like you are saying even if no one pays for service, the same level of service should still exist. If the fire department can’t offer the service because they can’t afford to, why does a neighboring department have to under mutual aid? Why does the burden to provide service fall on the neighboring fire department? This is not specific to Bensenville and this is by no means cutting down their department. These are the cards they are dealt and you can see how the lack of funding is changing the way they are providing a service. So will citizens have to wait longer for a response, yes.
#16 by Michael m on October 17, 2020 - 12:43 PM
Wood Dale is in a similar situation. They do not have a truck either.
#17 by Michael m on October 17, 2020 - 12:39 PM
People need to understand that public safety is important. Especially in this day of COVID.
I am sure people don’t remember the huge apartment fire in Bensenville in 2017. The E-One ladder which is up for sale now, made a difference and saved lives. What if something like that ever happens again and the department does not have the ladder truck and only has 5 firefighters on duty. What about EMS runs I am sure people have needed the paramedics.
I don’t know which hospital they transport to ABMC or Elmhurst. There needed to be enough personnel on duty to take in a second Ambulance call if the first ambulance is on a run. Public safety matters!
#18 by FFPM571 on October 17, 2020 - 11:33 AM
They had to cut staffing because they had no money… but until they do they have to rely on mutual aid…SO cant pay for it.. No one goes …Right?
#19 by Jim Wilk on October 17, 2020 - 8:50 AM
FFPM571,
I must have missed the you can cut staffing and rely on automatic and mutual aid in the MABAS policies. In the society we live in, the tax payers decide what level of funding they are comfortable with paying for government by majority rules. The municipal government or fire protection district doesn’t make that decision, although they can advocate for more. They make the decision on how that funding is spent throughout their government. This includes how much is allocated to the fire department and for what activities. Whatever the level of funding is decided by the taxpayers is the level of service they receive. This level of funding should go up incrementally as the value of property goes up in their area. I’m not blaming it on the fire district or the taxpayers but if the taxpayers decide not to fund the fire department with more money, the fire department can’t provide a greater service. Now the choice should be either live with this level of service or look at other means such as sharing of services, hiring part time, consolidations, etc. What automatic and mutual aid has done is say don’t worry about waiting longer or consolidation, the town next door will handle your emergency for free. As Mike said, this wasn’t meant for everyday. I agree with Mike that administrations need to be honest with the taxpayers on what they can and can’t do as well as be honest with themselves on what type of service they can provide. With Covid-19, this is only going to get tougher as society adapts and tax money dwindles in many communities. Will communities be able to provide aid as their own resources decrease? I think it is counterproductive to tell citizens we need more money to fund services but if you don’t, don’t worry someone from another town is coming. Maybe consolidations should be a better option to explore. I believe this issue is not going away, so the more open the conversation is, the better off the fire service will be. Just my opinion.
#20 by Mike on October 16, 2020 - 8:43 PM
FFPM that isn’t what mutual aid was intended for. Too many places are reducing staffing and equipment while run volumes are going up because “we’ll just use mutual aid.” If you remember years ago when broadview had massive layoffs the president of MABAS Jay Reardon, said that MABAS wasn’t the answer, nor should it be for everyday normal operations. Administrations need to be open and honest with the taxpayers about their budgeting and maybe the Illinois fire district act needs to be changed regarding funding and how it is collected. Everything cost wise has risen dramatically over the last 15 years and then add things like the pierce frame rail issues where the manufacturer won’t stand by their product that fails after only 10-12 years and all the other mandates that cause costs to increase. You never hear administration say anything about that.
#21 by FFPM571 on October 16, 2020 - 7:40 PM
Jim… That is what Mutual aid is about.. So because you feel some taxpayers do not want to fund for fire and ambulance the rest should suffer? How do you as a fire district make that determination? It is not Bensenville or Limestone’s fault that they are underfunded. Bensenville’s tax base has been shrunk by nearly 1/3 because of Chicago. Limestone’s call volume has gone up.. How is any of that the taxpayers and or the residents fault ?
#22 by Jim Wilk on October 16, 2020 - 5:30 PM
This is the second post (the first being limestone) this week that states if crews are unavailable, surrounding towns will respond to the emergency. My question is why would the surrounding towns respond if the citizens of bensenville (or limestone) have spoken and do not wish to staff their fire department with more people? It is not the responsibility of other towns to compensate for taxpayers who do not wish to pay for services. This is a major problem with mutual and automatic aid that has put a bandaid on funding issues.