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Posts Tagged Waukegan Fire Department
New apparatus orders
Sep 9
Excerpts from abc7chicago.com:
A three-alarm fire burned through an apartment building in Waukegan Saturday as flames and smoke poured out of the 84-unit building on the 8000 block of Eighth Street.
Fire officials said the building had significant damage, but some residents may be able to re-enter their apartments after a few days. No injuries have been reported. According to the Red Cross, as many as 100 people may be displaced by the fire.
The Veterans Assistance Commission of Lake County offered to house any veterans displaced by the blaze at Rodeway Inn on Greenbay Road in Waukegan.
Excerpts from the ChicagoTribune.com:
Waukegan Fire Chief George Bridges Jr. was invited to a training session in North Chicago for public-safety personnel to become more capable of handling patients with dementia and, once he went through it, he decided he wanted his personnel to get the training as well. The number of these patients is just going to increase as baby boomers get older.
The training consists of two parts. One has participants wear goggles and gloves and then sort Skittles candies or playing cards. The second part is an explanation of the biological process behind dementia and how to handle patients.
According to the Alzheimer’s Association, dementia is a decline in memory or other thinking skills to the point where it has reduced a person’s ability to perform everyday activities. Dementia has been estimated to affect about 6 percent to 10 percent of people ages 65 and older — and can reach 40 percent for people over 90, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.
Sixty to 80 percent of dementia cases are linked to Alzheimer’s disease, according to the association. The second largest cause is vascular dementia, which can occur after a stroke, followed by Lewy bodies dementia, which is associated with Parkinson’s disease.
The World Health Organization reports the total number of new cases of dementia each year worldwide is nearly 9.9 million, meaning there is one new case every three seconds. The number of people with dementia is expected to increase to 75 million in 2030 and 132 million in 2050.
Those interested in more information on training or to become part of the effort can call 847-984-0103 or 847-962-9549.
This from Jeff Rudolph:
02/05/18
4335 94th st. Pleasant Prairie, WI
4th alarm
Several Illinois departments responded into Kenosha County to assist Pleasant Prairie with a fire in a large home . Newport, Winthrop Harbor, Zion, Beach Park, Waukegan, Antioch, and Gurnee responded to the scene. Several others filled in at their stations.
Jeff Rudolph photo
Jeff Rudolph photo
Jeff Rudolph photo
Jeff Rudolph photo
Jeff Rudolph photo
Jeff Rudolph photo
Excerpts from the ChicagoTribune.com:
A young woman staying in an illegal basement apartment in her family’s single-family home was in critical condition because of smoke inhalation after a fire Monday night during which firefighters rescued her.
“There was heavy smoke and fire visible in the basement area upon arrival,” said Steve Lenzi, spokesman for the Waukegan Fire Department, of the call at just before 5:30 p.m. at 1327 N. Jackson St..
“It was a very smokey basement fire,” Lenzi said. “We were notified of a person trapped inside in the basement. They did a heck of a job through smokey conditions.”
The fire started in a couch, but the cause is under investigation.
“Within 15 minutes of the call, we recovered the victim and had her on life-support in an ambulance,” Lenzi said.
The city building department was notified because it was an illegal basement bedroom. The fire in the couch was in a different area than the bedroom, Lenzi said.
“Nobody should be staying in a basement bedroom. It’s not a safe condition,” he said, adding there has to be access to a door or windows that are a certain height off the ground and large enough for a person to escape through.
“This is an old brick house with glass blocks in the basement windows, so they don’t even open,” Lenzi said.
As seen around … Waukegan
Sep 13
Steve Redick photo
This from Brian Murphy:
This story from the March 18, 1975 edition of the Waukegan News-Sun involves multiple fires occurring in an apartment complex which was located across the street from the old downtown central Waukegan Fire Station. The cause of the fire was a failure of a component in the building’s gas distribution service, which resulted in multiple fires breaking out simultaneously throughout the building. Rescues were made by Waukegan’s Hi-Ranger Snorkel and their mid-50’s-vintage Seagrave tillered, 85′, 3-section aerial ladder truck. Photos were taken by News-Sun photographer Don Martin. I would imagine the guys who responded are all long-since retired! Enjoy!Brian Murphy
from the March 18, 1975 edition of the Waukegan News-Sun
from the March 18, 1975 edition of the Waukegan News-Sun
from the March 18, 1975 edition of the Waukegan News-Sun
from the March 18, 1975 edition of the Waukegan News-Sun
from the March 18, 1975 edition of the Waukegan News-Sun
from the March 18, 1975 edition of the Waukegan News-Sun
Excerpts from the ChicagoTribune.com:
The Waukegan Fire Department has seen a turnover from highly experienced firefighters to younger ones in recent years, and at the same time, they are responding to fewer fires even though the call volume continues to increase.
Fire Chief George Bridges has emphasized training over the last 10 months, and recently, the department was given the go-ahead to use an old office building at 2634 Grand Ave. for drills. The structure has been empty for a few years and is a concern for neighbors, because homeless people or drug users would sometimes break in or use a rear stairway and landing area.
The owners are Howard and Ronnie Stillman, who have purchased and rehabilitated used car dealerships in the city and another office building at McAree Court. Their plans are to tear the medical building down and offer the property for redevelopment.
According to Bridges, a third of the department’s personnel has less than 10 years of experience, and 17 percent of the firefighters have less than five years on the job.
Fire Marshall Steven Lenzi said the office building has been perfect for training because it isn’t often firefighters can practice breaking through locked doors, “and there are a lot of those,” he said. The department does have a door simulator at one of the firehouses, but it’s not the same.
The building also offered multiple connected rooms and waiting rooms that provide a sort of maze for the firefighters to go through when the building is charged with artificial smoke from a machine to the point you can’t see someone standing next to you.
Firefighters still have to use a hose as a way to find their way back out, or when there are many rooms, they leave a firefighter in a doorway and he’s called “orientated man,” said Battalion Chief Brett Stickels, who in charge of training.
The training includes live radio traffic and sending one crew to find the fire where they carry a charged waterline. Another two crews are sent in to search for 175-pound dummies.
The fire marshal added that besides giving the younger firefighters training, this recent opportunity also gave mid-career firefighters who have been promoted and have taken over leading the crews a chance to practice with them in full gear with a fully charged line and zero visibility.
Lenzi said the department has gone from 150 fires a year to just fewer than 100, but its call volume has increased 10 percent. He added that even though crews are still busy, actual fire experience is harder to come by, making simulations more critical.
