Posts Tagged Antioch FIre Department

Antioch FD updates

This from Jeff Rudolph:

These run out of Antioch Sta 2
A212 is former Deerfield A20R and Squad 212 is former Knollwood S44,

Jeff R

Antioch FD ambulance

Antioch FD Ambulance 212 is a former Deerfield-Bannockburn FPD ambulance. Jeff Rudolph photo

Pierce Saber fire engine

Antioch FD Squad 212 is a former Knollwood FD engine. Jeff Rudolph photo

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2015 Lake County Fire Expo, 5-16-15 (more)

This from Asher Heimermann:
The annual Fire Safety Expo hosted by the Lake County Fire Chief’s Association was held at Gurnee Mills on Saturday, May 16th.
Apparatus from Gurnee, Lake Villa, Waukegan, North Chicago, Newport Township, Fox Lake, Antioch, Grayslake, Libertyville, Lake Forest and numerous other agencies were on site.
There were presentations and demonstrations from area fire departments as well as Police K-9, Illinois State Police.
Lake Villa FD Dive Unit

Asher Heimermann photo

Waukegan FD bomb squad

Asher Heimermann photo

Wauconda Fire District fire truck

Asher Heimermann photo

Libertyville FD tower ladder

Asher Heimermann photo

high angle rescue team demonstration

Asher Heimermann photo

high angle rescue team demonstration

Asher Heimermann photo

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2015 Lake County Fire Expo, 5-16-15

This from Niko Stefani:

Last Saturday May 16th, I was able to attend the 2015 Lake County Fire Expo hosted by the Lake County Fire Chiefs Association at Gurnee Mills Mall. Many departments were out there to show fire safety to the community. Here are some photos I took.

Here is my flickr page for more photos.  https://www.flickr.com/photos/106860196@N07/
Ferrara fire engine

Niko Stefani photo

fire truck filled with tools and equipment

Niko Stefani photo

fire trucks ion display

Niko Stefani photo

American LaFrance tower ladder

Niko Stefani photo

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Lake County fire departments request voter approval for tax increases

Excerpts from the ChicagoTribune.com:

Antioch: Reversing course from November’s failed referendum for a new property tax to fund ambulances services, 57 percent of voters in the village of Antioch responded Tuesday with votes in favor, according to unofficial results from the Lake County Clerk’s Office.

In Antioch Township, however, voting on a related ambulance services ballot question remained nearly deadlocked after 10 p.m., with “yes” votes holding 50.2 percent of the 1,726 ballots counted. All precincts were in and early votes counted, with only provisional ballots and late-arriving votes by mail unaccounted for, according to the clerk’s office. Official totals were not expected Tuesday night.

The separate referendum questions for unincorporated residents and village residents asked taxpayers to approve a .25-cent ambulance tax that would cost the owner of a home with a market value of $100,000 just over $84 a year. The need for ambulance services is the result of the Antioch Rescue Squad disbanding.

Fox Lake: Voters were asked to approve a tax for ambulance services, and in unincorporated Fox Lake they voted at a 65 percent clip in favor of the ballot question, according to unofficial results with all 16 precincts reporting.

Officials said the funds will help the Fox Lake Fire Protection District upgrade equipment, such as breathing apparatus, and tools. The district also has a fire engine and tanker truck beyond maximum age recommended by the National Fire Protection Association Standards.

Newport Township FPD:  According to unofficial vote totals, the Newport Township Fire Protection District did not garner enough votes to raise its ambulance tax rate.

With all five precincts counted, 56 percent of voters cast ballots against the measure.

The district was seeking to raise its tax rate .132 cents per $100 of assessed valuation to help fund the replacement of aging equipment after the district used reserve funds to build a second fire station.

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Fatal house fire in Antioch, 3-15-15

Excerpts from the ChicagoSunTimes.com:

An elderly man is dead after a house fire … in the 38000 block of Drexel Boulevard in unincorporated Antioch Township  Sunday morning

… according to the sheriff’s office … the fire started in an upstairs room of the three-level home and six of the seven residents were able to escape before firefighters arrived. The seventh resident, identified as 76-year-old Lowell B. Simonson, was found in an upstairs bedroom … and … was pronounced dead on the way to [the hospital]. [His] 74-year-old wife … is in serious condition with smoke inhalation.

The cause and origin of the fire remain under investigation … the house was a complete loss.

rural water supply setup at fire scene

Tim Olk photo

house damaged by radiant heat of fire next door

Tim Olk photo

houe gutted by fire

Tim Olk photo

house fire scene with long hose lays

Tim Olk photo

fire department water tenner

Tim Olk photo

fire department water tenders in line

Tim Olk photo

fire department canteen service unit

Tim Olk photo

fireman with hose at fire scene

Tim Olk photo

firemen with hose at fire scene

Tim Olk photo

firefighters after battling house fire

These two were on the first rig that found the house well involved. They went in and made the grab and got the victim out before the house became untenable. Tim Olk photo

fireman with hose at fire scene

Tim Olk photo

house fire scene with long hose lays

Tim Olk photo

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Antioch Rescue Squad donations create controversy at home

Excerpts from a Daily Herald article:

Stone Park Fire Chief Michael Paige received a gift last year when the Antioch Rescue Squad (ARS) offered to give his department a used ambulance stocked with medical supplies.

In all, the squad gave three ambulances to agencies outside its home base in Antioch and Antioch Township, yet denied a request for a similar donation to the nearby Antioch Fire Department. Rescue squad leaders initially approved the request in March 2014 but rescinded it a month later, Antioch fire officials said, and forced them to spend $69,000 in taxpayer money to buy and equip a used ambulance.

Those squad ambulances and lifesaving equipment were originally purchased, in part, with donations from Antioch-area residents and groups, Antioch Fire Department Chief John Nixon said, and they should have been made available to benefit rescue services close to home.”Because we didn’t see one dime from (the ARS), we had to spend taxpayer money to bring in ambulances and equipment to operate and protect the residents of Antioch and Antioch Township.”

Antioch Rescue Squad Chief Brian DeKind and President Todd Thommes did not respond to numerous requests for interviews on the matter.

However, officials with the First Fire Protection District of Antioch think the reason behind the choice of ambulance recipients may stem from the 75-year-old volunteer organization not being offered a contract to provide rescue services — a job now being handled by the Antioch Fire Department.

The Antioch Fire Department handles fire and rescue services in Antioch and Antioch Township. It is funded by and receives oversight from the village of Antioch, Antioch Township, and the First Fire Protection District of Antioch.

DeKind never provided a specific reason for rejecting the donation request, fire district Administrator Ted Jozefiak said, but he believes it’s because the squad was “upset for not having them as a service provider. I asked him if we could have an ambulance, and he said ‘yes … he called later and said the membership of the rescue squad voted against it. They didn’t give us anything.”

Antioch-area fire and rescue relationships began to sour in 2012 after three female Antioch Rescue Squad members named several squad members and high-ranking officials in a sexual harassment lawsuit. A subsequent Illinois Department of Public Health investigation found squad members mistreated patients, abused medications and allowed employees to begin shifts within hours of excessively drinking alcohol.

A short time later, a former squad treasurer was charged with theft of more than $10,000 and pleaded guilty. Former Antioch Rescue Squad Chief Wayne Sobczak retired, and squad President Steve Smouse stepped down soon after.

DeKind and Thommes took over, but the squad parted ways with the village of Antioch in May 2013 when the two sides couldn’t come to terms on a long-term contract. The fire department initially hired an ambulance contractor to handle emergency calls, Nixon said, but it started purchasing ambulances and supplies to bring ambulance service in house.

The squad continued to serve township residents for a year until the fire protection district board did not renew its contract in May 2014. The board decided to contract rescue services with the fire department in order to consolidate all village and township fire and rescue services under one agency.

No longer needed, the squad ambulances and equipment were donated to the Lake County High Schools Technology Campus in Grayslake and the Newport Township Fire Protection District in Wadsworth, in addition to Stone Park’s fire department in Cook County.

Derrick Burress, principal of the tech campus, said squad leaders offered a used ambulance worth $15,000 for teaching purposes April 17. It was approved by the tech campus board May 2, Burress said. “It’s truly a great educational tool for students here,” Burress said. “It’s used every day to train EMS students in Lake County, including students from Antioch.”

Stone Park’s Paige said his department received the former squad ambulance in late spring or early summer through a Stone Park commander and a lieutenant, who also were Antioch Rescue Squad volunteers. Paige said the $10,000 ambulance had more than 100,000 miles on it, but was stocked with emergency supplies, including health service packs and a cot.

Mark Kirschhoffer, chief of Newport fire district, said he was contacted by a squad member and asked if he “could use another ambulance.” Kirschhoffer said the 2007 Road Rescue ambulance — worth about $15,000 — is a back up to the district fleet of ambulances. “I told Chief Nixon in Antioch they can certainly use it should anything happen and they need one,” Kirschhoffer said.

Nixon said it takes about four ambulances to serve residents in Antioch and Antioch Township. Three serve as primary rescue vehicles and one is used as a reserve.

The fire department purchased and stocked two ambulances for use in the village of Antioch in 2013. A used ambulance was donated by the Antioch Firefighters Association in February 2014, and another used ambulance was purchased in May.

Nixon said the Antioch village board and fire district paid about $157,000 to buy and stock all four ambulances to get the rescue service up and running. The overall cost was $232,000, minus the $20,000 firefighters association donation and $55,000 from a state-controlled insurance fund.

“You have to stock it with supplies like life packs and defibrillators and things like that. Had the ARS donated their ambulances to us, we wouldn’t have needed to spend the money to get the vintage ones up and running. As a result of the ARS’ decision, we had to use taxpayer money to purchase and stock a fourth ambulance,” Nixon said. “They had the opportunity to donate items to us, but they chose not to.”

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Antioch makes cuts to fund EMS

Excerpts from the Lake County News-Sun about Antioch EMS costs requiring budget cuts throughout the village.

The cost of funding emergency ambulance services in Antioch without dedicated tax revenue has resulted in deep budget cuts across the village’s departments, services and programs.

On the public safety side, trustees agreed to reduce police overtime spending by $50,000 and the fire department will close its station on Grass Lake Road, officials said. Downsizing to two fire stations is projected to save Antioch $87,900, officials said.

In addition to putting all road improvement projects and equipment purchases on hold, the budget cuts will take $24,450 from the Public Works Department, $8,865 from the clerk’s office, $38,470 from community development and $1,200 from finance. The Village Board also removed $50,000 from the budget that previously was granted to the senior center.

According to village leaders, the budget cuts are directly tied to voters rejecting a referendum in November that would have set an ambulance tax.

“There’s only so much money coming in,” Antioch Mayor Lawrence Hanson said. [He] explained that the village and the First Fire Protection District are trying to make up for the $1.5 million it costs annually for ambulance services in the village and unincorporated areas.

Another tax request referendum is planned for April and village leaders are prepared to cut another $92,410 if that measure fails. Hanson said those savings would come from administration, police, community development and finance departments. Another $100,000 will be saved by cutting employees, he said. There were 103 village employees (in 2009). Now there are 67.

Hanson said the village had a $2 million deficit when he took over as mayor in 2009. Since then, he said, the Village Board has been focused on bringing spending and revenues in line.

But that was before the village was hit by the added cost for ambulance services, created when the Antioch Rescue Squad folded.

The Fire Department previously staffed 11 firefighters on duty at all times. The cuts will reduce that number to eight — four manning each station — in covering the 36-square-mile service area.

thanks Dan

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Antioch to seek tax referendum again

The Daily Herald has this article:

Fallout from a failed referendum request for ambulance service in and around Antioch has begun, sparking plans to again ask voters to approve a new tax to pay for the calls. As of 6 a.m. Dec. 1, the on-duty staff at the Antioch Fire Department was reduced from 11 to eight, leaving one of the three district stations unstaffed.

That means fewer people are covering a 36-square-mile area in and around the village, with no crew on duty at Station 3, 24675 W. Grass Lake Road. Stations at 700 Deep Lake Road and 835 Holbek Drive each will be staffed with a crew of four.

Funding has been an issue since last May, when the fire district did not renew a contract with the Antioch Rescue Squad and consolidated operations under the Antioch Fire Department. That left the district and village to split the cost of ambulance service. But with no specific property tax line item as a source of funding, both began burning through reserves.

In November, voters in Antioch and the unincorporated areas of the fire district by an overall 4-3 ratio rejected a question that would have established a taxing category for ambulance service. The request would have cost the owner of a home valued at $100,000 about $83 each year and provided a total of $1.5 million annually for ambulance service.

Within the past two weeks, fire and village officials in separate actions authorized placing the same question on the April 7 general election ballot. Village funding for the service comes from its general fund, which pays for all day-to-day services, a situation that didn’t exist previously. At the same time, the village board is considering reductions in other services to plug the gap.

The department has no plan to convert to full-time firefighters, as that would require pension payments and other expenses, for example. He also said there is no legal requirement that ambulance service be provided. If the referendum request fails again, ambulance service could be curtailed or eliminated, officials said.

thanks Dan

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Antioch to reduce staffing

From the Antioch FD website:

Beginning with work shifts on Monday December 1st, the Antioch Fire Department has reduced the number of personnel from 11 to 8 personnel on duty. This staffing reduction is in line with necessary budget adjustments in the wake of the failed ambulance service referendum in the Village of Antioch and the unincorporated area of the First Fire District. The immediate impact of this action is that Fire Station #3 will not have a duty crew on duty. Residents are instructed to call 911 in an emergency and avoid driving to a nearby fire station for assistance. The 8 person assignment consists of 4 duty crew members at Station #1 located at 835 Holbek Drive and 4 duty crew members located at Station #2 at 700 Deep Lake Road. Each station will respond with a fire engine or an ambulance to cover the 36 square mile service area as required by the nature of the emergency. Call back personnel will be requested to report back to duty for larger scale incidents or multiple call situations.

thanks Dan

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Antioch MVA with extrication, 11/26/14

This from Tim Olk:

Antioch Pin In Accident Rt 173 & Deep Lake Road

 

firemen cut victim from car after crash

Tim Olk photo

firemen cut victim from car after crash

Tim Olk photo

firemen cut victim from car after crash

Tim Olk photo

firemen cut victim from car after crash

Tim Olk photo

firemen cut victim from car after crash

Tim Olk photo

firemen cut victim from car after crash

Tim Olk photo

firemen cut victim from car after crash

Tim Olk photo

firemen cut victim from car after crash

Tim Olk photo

firemen cut victim from car after crash

Tim Olk photo

firemen cut victim from car after crash

Tim Olk photo

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