Posts Tagged Lakewood Fire Department

Lakewood signs new agreement with Crystal lake

Nov 25

Posted by Admin in Fire Department News | 3 Comments

The decision will, as one trustee put it, “change the face of Lakewood” by closing the village’s only fire station on Haligus Road and operating out of a Crystal Lake station on the other side of town. The Lakewood Village Board voted, 3-1, with one trustee abstaining Tuesday night, to go with a slightly cheaper contract offered by the Crystal Lake Fire Department that tied increases to the village’s tax base over renewing its contract with the Woodstock Fire Rescue Protection District.

Tags: Crystal Lake FD to cover Village of Lakewood, Crystal Lake Fire Department, Lakewood Fire Department, Lakewood switches fire protection from Woodstock to Crystal Lake, Town of Lakewood considers options for fire protection

Lakewood considers options for fire protection

Apr 10

Posted by Admin in Fire Service News | 2 Comments

Excerpts from the Northwest Herald:

A long-term solution to the village of Lakewood’s fire protection services is a topic of conversation as the expiration date for the village’s agreement with the Woodstock Fire/Rescue District approaches.

Escalating costs have sent the village from option to option over the past eight years, first ending a decades-long agreement with the city of Crystal Lake to hire American Emergency Services to operate a village fire department and then contracting with the Woodstock Fire/Rescue District in 2011.

A five-year agreement with the Woodstock Fire/Rescue District is set to expire at the end of the year.

“There is a philosophical discussion happening internally about whether we should continue to have a contractual relationship with a provider for this service or run a referendum so that our fire service is provided by another unit of local government through a fire district,” village President Erin Smith said.

The village pays for fire protection services out of its general fund, an unusual practice in McHenry County where most areas are served by a separate fire protection district that passes its own property tax levy and has its own governing board.

The Woodstock Fire/Rescue District employees that operated out of the village-owned Haligus Road station used to wear uniforms identifying them as with the Lakewood Fire Department and still use village-owned equipment.

To join a fire protection district or to create its own, voters would have to pass a referendum, something that has happened in the past, Village Manager Catherine Peterson said. Voters had OK’d joining the Crystal Lake Rural Fire Protection District, but for reasons Peterson doesn’t know, the decision was never acted upon.

Tags: Lakewood Fire Department, Town of Lakewood considers options for fire protection, Woodstock Fire Department, Woodstock Fire Rescue District, Woodstock Rural Fire Protection District

4-Alarm fire in Fox River Grove, 9-29-13

Oct 4

Posted by Admin in Apparatus on-scene, Fire Scene photos | 9 Comments

This from Tyler Tobolt:

Photos from Fox River Grove 4th Alarm Structure Fire on September 29th

Around 6.15pm on September 29th, The Algonquin-Lake in the Hills FPD got a report of a structure fire at 1 Algonquin Rd in Barrington Hills. Algonquin Engine 143 reported this was Fox River Grove’s jurisdiction and Fox River Grove FPD was dispatched. Companies responding reported a large header so Fox River Grove command requested a 2nd Alarm on Box Card #5-670 to the scene. Algonquin Eng 143 backed down the driveway to start a tanker operation to supply water to the Fox River Grove engine in front of the building.

The following departments responded on the 2nd Alarm; Lakewood Engine 1041, Carpentersville Engine 941, Palatine Engine 81, Hoffman Estates Engine 23, a Spring Grove engine, Barrington Tender 362, Crystal Lake Tender 371, East Dundee Tender 471, Nunda-Rural Tender 1371, Huntley Tender 973, Wauconda Ambulance 341, Marengo Rescue Ambulance 1152, the Algonquin chief, a Barrington chief, a Crystal Lake chief, a Huntley chief, Lake Zurich as RIT, a Cary Safety Officer, EMA, and the Salvation Army.

COQ: Nunda-Rural ambulance, McHenry engine, Nunda Rural chief.

Shortly after the 2nd Alarm was requested, command requested a 4th Alarm on Box Card 5-670. The following departments responded on the 4th; Fox Lake Engine 244, a Mundelein engine, a Grayslake engine, Elgin Engine 1, Schaumburg Engine 54, Rolling Meadows Engine 16, Woodstock Tender 73, Palatine Rural Tender 36, McHenry Tender 1274, Wonder Lake Tender 1671, Richmond Tender 1472, Hebron Tender 871, a Lake Zurich chief, a McHenry chief, a Wauconda chief, a Lakewood chief, and Air 5.

The fire was burning for about 2-3 hours

Tyler Tobolt photo

Tags: 4-alarm fire in Fox Rover Grove, Algonquin-Lake in the Hills Fire District, fire engine photos, Fox River Grove Fire Department, Fox River Grove Fire Protection District, Lakewood Fire Department, smoke on the horizon from large house fire, Tyler Tobolt

Fox River & Countryside Fire Rescue District update

Apr 16

Posted by bgshap in Fire Department History, Fire Department News, Fire Service News, New Delivery, Reader submission | 3 Comments

Scott Peterson has supplied quite a bit of information about the new Fox River & Countryside Fire Rescue District.

– the Lakewood Pierce (X-1042, X-Arlington Heights Eng 4) is now officially a reserve for the district. They got it last week.

– the Bartlett Seagrave is being repainted, started last week. It will be the same as the new engines.

– one of the cars is from Lakewood, the former D/C car.

– they’ll be on the North Tower of Kane County with Pingree Grove & Hampshire.

– all of the apparatus was delivered yesterday and is in storage.

Here is a list from one of the district’s press releases.

Alexis 2011 IHC 2-door cab	Custom Tanker/Pumper (N)
Alexis 2011 IHC 4-door cab	commercial pumper (N)
Alexis 1991	Custom Commercial Pumper (U)
Seagrave 1993 (X-Bartlett)	Custom Commercial Pumper (U?R)
Alexis 1998	Pumper (U?R)
Pierce 1990 (X-Lakewood, X-Arlington Heights)	Arrow Pumper (U?R)
Alexis 2011 IHC 2-door cab	Custom Tanker?Pumper (N)
Medtec PD168 2011	Ford E?450 Ambulance (N)
Medtec PD172 2011	Ford F?450 Ambulance (N)
Medtec 2001	Ford E?350 Ambulance (U?R)
Alexis 1995	12′ Squad Unit, Ford F450 (U)
Ford F350 XLT 2011	4X4 Crew Cab w/plow (N)
Ford F350 XLT 2011	Same as above (N)
Chevrolet 2003 Impala	4-door car (U)
Chevrolet 2006 Impala	4-door car (U)
Ford 2011	Expedition 4×4 (N)
Ford 2011	Expedition 4×4 (N)
Boat & Trailer (U)

Tags: Alexis Fire Apparatus, Arlington Heights Fire Department, Bartlett Fire District, Fox River & Countryside Fire/Rescue District, Lakewood Fire Department, Scott Peterson

Lakewood Fire Department update

Dec 17

Posted by bgshap in Fire Department News, Fire Service News | 1 Comment

The Trib Local – Crystal Lake has a thorough article HERE about the Lakewood Fire Department and the future arrangements with the Woodstock Fire Rescue Department. Among the information in the article are the costs for services that Lakewood will pay to The Woodstock Fire Rescue Department over the next five years and information about the $10,000 per month that they will pay to American Emergency Services for the year 2011. The article also outlines the status of apparatus and personnel currently under the umbrella of the Lakewood Fire Department.

The chief and part-time deputy will not be retained. All full-time employees will be evaluated and offered part-time positions with the opportunity to go through Woodstock’s testing process to become full-time. Because the fire district is part of a union, full-time firefighters can’t be absorbed.

Not all current employees will be hired, Woodstock Fire Chief Ralph Webster said. Administrators will not be retained because Woodstock already has those positions. Wage and benefits would change little, he said.

Thanks again to Dennis McGuire, Jr. for

Tags: American Emergency Services, Dennis McGuire Jr., Lakewood Fire Department, Woodstock Fire Rescue District

Lakewood update

Dec 3

Posted by bgshap in Fire Department News | Comments off

It is official that the Woodstock Fire Rescue District will takeover fire protection for the town of Lakewood. For the near future, the Lakewood Fire Department name will remain in existence and the uniforms, bunker gear, and apparatus will still carry that name. Many of the full-time and part-time Lakewood employees will be employed by Woodstock and might work from either of the Woodstock stations or the Lakewood station. Some of the Lakewood apparatus is owned by American Emergency Services and will leave at the first of the year when Woodstock takes over.

Tags: American Emergency Services, Lakewood Fire Department, Woodstock Fire Rescue District

A new start for the St. Charles Countryside FPD

Nov 23

Posted by bgshap in Fire Department News, Fire Service News | Comments off

Dennis McGuire, Jr. found this article in the Daily Herald about the St. Charles Countryside FPD changing their name to the Fox River and Countryside Fire and Rescue Department. There has been speculation that the department would split from their contract with the St. Charles Fire Department and form a new department. One thought is that American Emergency Services which is losing a contract to run the Lakewood Fire Department in McHenry County, might run this department in Kane County.

Tags: American Emergency Services, Dennis McGuire Jr., Fox River and Countryside Fire and Rescue, Lakewood Fire Department, St Charles Fire Department, St. Charles Countryside Fire Protection District

Lakewood Fire Department update

Nov 21

Posted by bgshap in Fire Department News | 1 Comment

HERE is an article from the Northwest Herald confirming arrangements for the Woodstock Fire Rescue District to provide fire protection to Lakewood beginning next year. The article outlines the projected costs, the continued use of the Lakewood Fire Station, and talk of staffing. Lakewood has been contracting with American Emergency Services, a private company, for the past four years since they terminated a contract with Crystal Lake.

Tags: American Emergency Services, Crystal Lake, Lakewood Fire Department, Woodstock

Lakewood to disband fire department

Nov 14

Posted by bgshap in Fire Department News, Fire Service News | Comments off

The Village of Lakewood, in McHenry County, created a new fire department four years ago. Prior to that, they had contracted for many years with Crystal Lake for fire protection. They are currently looking into an intergovernmental agreement with the Woodstock Fire Rescue District to provide these services beginning the first of next year. An article in the Northwest Herald can be seen HERE.

Thanks to Bill Friedrich for bringing this to our attention.

Lakewood Engine 1041 came from Tallman, NY. It was origiinally a 1977 Hahn 1500/1000 that was refurbished by Pierce in 1991 with a new Pierce Arrow cab. Larry Shapiro photo