Posts Tagged Deputy Chief Drew Smith

Bus fire in Prospect Heights, 2-6-14

This from Drew Smith:

All-Hand Pace Bus Fire for E39, S9, S42, B9, and A9 at Apple and Milwaukee

On Thursday, February 6th at 3:10 p.m. E39 and B9 were dispatched to a car fire at Apple Drive and Milwaukee Avenue in Prospect Heights. Engine 39 arrived and reported the fire was in a Pace Bus a block west of Milwaukee and they were dropping a line. Battalion 9 arrived two minutes later and asked RED Center to send Squad 9 also. The bus driver reported to B9 that all passengers were off and none were injured. The fire involved the rear section of the bus which spread to both sides and underneath, including all four rear tires. S9 used a second line on the fire.

Due to the stubborn nature of the fire and the severe weather B9 asked RED Center to send Ambulance 9 and Wheeling Squad 42 for assistance. Foam from E39 was used. S9 and S42 used a K-12 saw to cut open the sides and floor to access the fire. However, cutting the floor was futile due to the design of the bus and the fact that the underside of the frame is covered with a metal plate. S9’s driver had to shovel out a fire hydrant to secure a positive water supply. Several SCBA masks and regulators froze up and frozen foam coated several firefighters like snowmen. More than a dozen spare air tanks were used before the fire was out. After more than an hour firefighters were able to have Pace’s wrecker lift the bus so they could ensure the fire was completely out.

firemen extinguish transit bus fire

Drew Smith photo

 

Prospect Heights firemen extinguish transit bus fire

Drew Smith photo

firemen extinguish transit bus fireDrew Smith photo

firemen extinguish transit bus fire

Drew Smith photo

firemen extinguish transit bus fire

Drew Smith photo

firemen extinguish transit bus fire

Drew Smith photo

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In Production update – Prospect Heights

This from Drew Smith:

Progress on new squad pumper: Paint finished. Delivery expected in March.

new fire truck being built

Alexis Fire Apparatus photo

new fire truck being built

Alexis Fire Apparatus photo

new fire truck being built

Alexis Fire Apparatus photo

new fire truck being built

Alexis Fire Apparatus photo

new fire truck being built

Alexis Fire Apparatus photo

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Prospect Heights Fire Department history

Bill Friedrich recently added the image below to his collection, and he asked Drew Smith for assistance in dating the photo.

Prospects Fire Department history

Here is the historical information that Drew provided.

I’ve confirmed the photo is from 1963

A few comments:

  • When the station was first built a neon sign of FIRE DEPARTMENT was installed above the overhead door. Later that sign was replaced with red letters PROSPECT HEIGHTS FIRE DEPARTMENT.  The photo Bill obtained has the new lettering installed. Also, the paint store sign to the left indicates this is a later photo as that paint store existed until the new Walgreens was built. I have photos showing this newer red PHFD lettering with a different occupancy in the paint store’s location. Also when the station was first built there wasn’t a curb between the road and the  apron. It was a gravel transition.
  • Below you can see the years and details of these three pieces.

Year

Type

Signature(s)

Make/Mfr.

Pump GPM

Tank

Other

47

Pumper

#3

173

Ford/Darley

750

500

Purchased new

48

Car

#4

174

Ford

“Pie wagon”

57

Car

?

Ford

Red & white wagon used by fire chief
  • The station wagon was the chiefs car and it would have been used by the first two. There have only been four chiefs in the history of the PHFD:

Fran Foor (1944-1962) *Served as president of IL Fire Chiefs Assn. in 1954

William Andrew (1962-1969)

Donald Gould, Sr. (1969-1988)

Donald Gould, Jr. (1988-present)

  • I’m going to say this photo was taken in 1963 based on the license plates. According to this webpage http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vehicle_registration_plates_of_Illinois , in 1963 license plates were dark green with gold letters.  This is how the plates appear to me.
  • This red and white 57 Ford was replaced in 1966 with a Chevrolet Impala station wagon.
  • Between 1964 and 1968 the PHFD purchased three new pieces:

Year

Type

Signature(s)

Make/Mfr.

Pump GPM

Tank

Other

64

Squad

#5

175

Squad 9

909

Chevy

Utility body truckBreathing air cascadeGenerator

66

Pumper

#2

172

Engine 9R

Ford/Darley

750

1000

Twin high-pressure booster reels

68

Tanker

#6

174

Tanker 9

Ford/Darley

750

1500

  • The 47 Ford Darley pumper remained until sometime in the 1970s. In 1973 the department purchased a new Dodge station wagon for the chief, a Ward LaFrance pumper, and it’s first ambulance built on a Dodge van.

 

I have attached a few photos:

Prospect Heights FD 1957 chief's car

  • This appears to be the 57 Ford when it was new. The red license plate with white letters is from 1957.

Prospect Heights FD 1948 Ford van

  • This is the 48 Ford “pie wagon” (that’s what it was referred to by every old-timer when I joined even though it was long gone) It has been restored by someone in the NW Suburbs (no contact info available).

Drew Smith

Deputy Chief

Prospect Heights Fire Protection District

10 East Camp McDonald Road

Prospect Heights, IL 60070

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Multi-vehicle, multi-victim MVA in Wheeling 3-28-13 (pt 2)

This from Deputy Chief Drew Smith with regards to the multi-vehilce accident last week on Palatine Road:

Prospect Heights and Wheeling FDs have a joint response for incidents on Palatine Road. A unified command structure ensures a timely response regardless of jurisdiction. For the entire three miles that the junior expressway (IDOT term) runs east-west it goes in and out of the two towns sometimes in one, then the other, or it serves as the border. There are also four bridges and only three interchanges where access can be gained. When RED Center receives a 9-1-1 call of an incident, a dual response is dispatched with each department approaching the scene from opposite directions. This is to ensure that should traffic prevent access from one direction, the other companies can get to the crash quickly. Once one company is on scene, the location can be verified and the appropriate apparatus can continue in or be returned. When reported as a pin-in, the additional extrication companies are to stage before entering Palatine Road and wait for the first company to verify where to approach from. I have attached a map showing the three grids and where companies approach from.

Grid 923

Grid 3923

Grid 3924

Companies

Entry Point

Companies

Entry Point

Companies

Entry Point

A9, E9

A23, E23

Schoenbeck

Wheeling Rd.

A9, E39

A23, E23

Wolf Rd.

Wheeling Rd.

A9, E39

A24, E24

Wolf Rd.

Milwaukee Ave.

For a pin-in add PH E39 or Sq. 9 and Wheeling E24 and the Wheeling squad or truck plus PH and Wheeling chiefs.

 

Prospect Heights FPD grid map for Palatine Road

Prospect Heights FPD nS Wheeling FD grid map for Palatine Road joint responses.

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Historic fire: Goldblatt’s fire in Mt Prospect, 1977 (pt1)

This from Drew Smith:

These are from the Goldblatt’s fire at Central and Rand Roads in Mount Prospect on Sunday, February 6, 1977 ( think I said it was 1976 in the earlier comment) and shows both Glenbrook’s and  MP’s Snorkels in operation. The GB Snorkel is before they sent it to Pierce for the new cab and chassis with it’s yellow paint.

Thought I had a picture of Rolling Meadow’s Snorkel at the race track but can’t find it.

Just came across this page which shows a ¾ shot of RM and Libertyville snorkels.  http://yngfire.com/index.php?topic=2952.0

Drew Smith

Deputy Chief

Prospect Heights Fire Protection District

 

Randhurst fire at Goldblatt's in 1977

Drew Smith archives

Randhurst fire at Goldblatt's in 1977

Drew Smith archives

Randhurst fire at Goldblatt's in 1977

Drew Smith archives

Larry Shapiro submitted images of the Snorkel units mentioned.

75' Snorkel from Glenview Rural FPD

Glenbrook FPD 1968 Ford/Pierce 75′ Snorkel before the rehab. Larry Shapiro photo

Glenbrook FPD 75' Pierce Arrow Snorkel

Glenbrook Snorkel 8 received an enclosed Pierce Arrow cab and new paint scheme in 1986. Larry Shapiro photo

American LaFrance Aero Chief Snorkel

Mount Prospect Truck 2 was a 1964 American LaFrance 900 Series 90′ Aero Chief Snorkel with a 1,000-GPM pump. Larry Shapiro photo

American LaFrance Aero Chief Snorkel

Rolling Meadows 1970 American LaFrance 90′ 1000 Series Aero Chief Snorkel 630 had a 1,000-GPM pump. Larry Shapiro photo

 

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House fire in Prospect Heights 2-21-13

The from Deputy Chief Drew Smith:

At approximately 12:01 a.m. on February 21 the Prospect Heights FD was dispatched to a reported structure fire in the 100 block of Parkway North. Upon arrival Battalion 9 declared a working fire in the two-car attached garage of the two-story house and assumed command. Engine 9 deployed a 2&1/2-inch hand line into the garage while Engine 39 advanced an 1&3/4-inch hand line into the front door to check for extension and primary search of the first floor. 

  • Wheeling Engine 23 performed a primary search of the second floor and checked for extension above the fire area.
  • Deputy Chief 901 was assigned the Division B.
  • Tanker 9 nursed Engine 9
  • Long Grove Tanker 55 nursed Engine 39.
  • Northbrook Tower 12 assisted with overhaul in the garage.
  • Tanker 55/Ambulance 55 crew was assigned to on-deck on the B side of the structure.
  • Deputy Chief 3901 assumed the Plans Section Chief role with Battalion 9.
  • Arlington Heights Ambulance 2 was assigned as EMS/Rehab.
  • Wheeling Chief 2400 was assigned as the safety officer.
  • Palatine Rural Tanker 36 and Glenview Engine 8/Ambulance 7 were held in staging.
  • Long Grove Chief 5500 and North Maine Chief 100 were held at the command post and returned once no fire extension was found and the fire was confined to the garage.
Fire was held to contents of the garage and did not spread into structural members or living areas. 11 companies and 6 chiefs responded: 7 Companies and 3 chiefs on the report and an additional 4 companies and 3 chiefs upon declaration of the working fire.
garage fire in Prospect heights

Drew Smith photo

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Who was the first fire department?

In response to a recent thread about the first fire department … Drew Smith submitted the following:

Who is really the first? The first ever? The first paid? The first to be known by the name they use today? Here is some information that may help in this discussion.

Chicago: The city of Chicago was incorporated in 1833. At that time it had a volunteer FD. In 1858 the first paid FD was organized. Around 1993 there was a display in the main hallway of the Quinn Fire Academy that described the transition in the 1800s from volunteers to paid men.

Cincinnati: It is stated in several sources that in 1853 Cincinnati hired its first paid men and became an all-paid department.

Boston: The Boston Fire Department describes themselves as “first in the nation” stating is was formed in 1678 as a paid FD. According to http://www.bostonfirehistory.org/historybostonbefore1859.html these paid men were call men. In the book The History of the Boston Fire Department and Boston Fire Alarm System 1859-1973 brought to you by the Boston Sparks Association http://www.bostonsparks.com/bookV1/ it appears that “permanent” men were added to various companies beginning around 1873 and that “call” members were used in whole or part for certain companies. It was not until 1909 that all of the call member were replaced with permanent members (pg. 34). Several sources describe 1859 as the beginning of the “modern” area of the BFD.

FDNY: The Fire Department of New York was formed following the revolutionary war and was all volunteer. It operated this way until 1865 when the Metropolitan Fire Department was formed and all paid men were hired. The MFD consisted of only Manhattan and Brooklyn as the other three boroughs had not yet been annexed into NYC. As they were volunteers in these boroughs, they were slowly replaced with paid men. In 1870 the MFD was abolished and the FDNY was reestablished. There are many more details to this contained in these two links.

http://www.nyc.gov/html/fdny/html/history/fire_service.shtml

http://nyfd.com/history/fdny.html

Here is another interesting site: http://firehistory.org/oldest-fd/oldest-paid/  What I find interesting is that many of these websites have the same exact verbiage so it is not clear who was the first to state certain “facts” and what reference can substantiate each fact.

The Civil War played a huge role in the development of the fire service as many firemen served in militias for their state and fought for the Union or Confederacy. The paramilitary concepts inherit to our modern-day practices take their roots from these men and their war experience.  If you are ever at the Gettysburg battle field, off of Sickles Avenue north of Wheatfield Road in the middle of a big field is a statue of a fireman and a soldier erected by the NYC volunteer firemen in tribute to those brothers who fought in the battle and gave their life.

 statue of a fireman and a soldier erected by the NYC volunteer firemen in tribute to those brothers who fought in the battle and gave their life.

A statue of a fireman and a soldier erected by the NYC volunteer firemen in tribute to those brothers who fought in the battle and gave their life. Drew Smith photo

 statue of a fireman and a soldier erected by the NYC volunteer firemen in tribute to those brothers who fought in the battle and gave their life.

The plaque below the statue. Drew Smith photo

 

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Prospect Heights history

This from Deputy Chief Drew Smith:

Here are a few pages from an old Prospect Heights log book.  Many departments still keep a hand-written log book, but for whatever reason this practice was discontinued here by 1981.  The first working fire entry is recorded by Captain Ron Olsen who was later promoted to deputy chief. He retired from that rank and continues to serve with the PHFD as a part-time fire inspector.

Chief Olsen also made the second entry. It has additional entries by Lieutenant Warren Lippert and Captain Norm Bittner.  Lt. Lippert’s son is retired Arlington Heights firefighter Dean Lippert. Also, it appears that around November 1, 1971 is when the PHFD adopted the Code 1, 2, 3, 4 system used by many fire departments.  I believe the origin of this can be attributed to the Elk Grove Village FD.

Prospect Heights Fire District history log book entry

Prospect Heights Fire District history log book entry

Prospect Heights Fire District history log book entry

Prospect Heights Fire District history log book entry

Prospect Heights Fire District history log book entry

Prospect Heights Fire District history log book entry

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Prospect Heights FPD open house

The Prospect Heights FPD had their open house on Saturday and Drew Smith submitted the following:

At the beginning of the event we had two ceremonies: One was the dedication of a memorial to Thomas O’Donoghue, past president of the Board of Trustees. The other was the promotion of John Douglas (Doug) Tragesser to Lieutenant.

Prospect Heights FPD open house 2012

Prospect Heights FPD photo

Prospect Heights FPD open house 2012

Prospect Heights FPD photo

Prospect Heights FPD open house 2012

Prospect Heights FPD photo

Prospect Heights FPD open house 2012

Prospect Heights FPD photo

Prospect Heights FPD open house 2012

Prospect Heights FPD photo

Prospect Heights FPD open house 2012

Prospect Heights FPD photo

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NIPSTA scraps old engine

This from Drew Smith:

NIPSTA Engine 2 (former Schiller Park) was scrapped due to a blown engine needing $20,000 in repairs. It was replaced earlier in the year with a former Deerfield-Bannockburn engine.
Former Schiller Park fire engine towed to scrap yard

The former Schiller Park Hendrickson/Darley engine that served NIPSTA for several years was recently towed to a scrap yard. Drew Smith photo

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