Archive for May, 2011

4-story roof fire in Glenview 5-22-11

May 23

Posted by bgshap in Apparatus on-scene, Fire, Fire Department News | 1 Comment

Glenview IL apartment building fire lighting strike Summit Drive 5-22-11

Northbrook Truck 12 went up on the northwest side of the building so firefighters could access the roof. The supply to Truck 12 was never charged. Larry Shapiro photo

The Glenview 9-1-1 center received calls for a fire at 2700 Summit Drive during a heavy storm after 10PM Sunday evening. Companies arrived at the four-story ‘L’ shaped building to find smoke and fire on the roof. The initial response included Glenview Engines 6 and 13, Battalion 6, Ambulance 6, Glenview Truck 14 which was using Engine 8R, and Northfield Truck 29. The alarm was upgraded to a Code 4 upon arrival which brought Glenview Engine 8, Glenview Ambulance 7, Northbrook Truck 12, and Morton Grove Squad 4. Northbrook Truck 12 was returning from a Code 4 fire in their district when this alarm came in.

Northfield Truck 29 was the first truck on the scene since Glenview Truck 14's company was running with a spare engine. Larry Shapiro photo

The damage to the roof can be seen here. The fire was knocked down quickly. Larry Shapiro photo

Both trucks put their main aerial to the roof and the fire was quickly contained to the area of origin.

Glenview Truck 14 was using Engine 8R which has more compartment space than the other reserve which better accommodates the equipment that is carried on the truck. Larry Shapiro photo

Tim Olk and Larry Shapiro went to the scene although there wasn’t much to see after the quick knock-down. Larry has a small gallery HERE.

Glenview Engine 6 was on the scene with their new Pierce Arrow XT engine. Larry Shapiro photo

Tags: apartment building fire, Glenview Fire Department, Larry Shapiro, lightning strike, Morton Grove Fire Department, Northbrook Fire Department, Northfield Fire Rescue, Pierce Arrow XT, roof fire, Tim Olk

New Huntley station nears completion

May 22

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

Huntley Fire Protection District Station 4

Huntley Station 4 appears completed from the outside except for landscaping and paving of the street. Larry Shapiro photo

Station 4 in Huntley is almost finished. Located on Algonquin Road west of Square Barn Road, the station sits off of Algonquin on the south side. The fire station shares a driveway with the Algonquin Bank and Trust. Previous posts HERE and HERE chronicle some of the stages of construction.

Tags: Huntley Fire Protection District, Larry Shapiro, new fire station, new station

Palatine moves into new station

May 22

Posted by bgshap in Fire Department History, Fire Department News, Fire Service News, New Fire Station | 2 Comments

Palatine moved into the new Station 81 on May 2, 2011. Larry Shapiro photo

At the beginning of May, Palatine closed Station 81 at 455 W. Dundee Road and moved into the new Station 81 at 1215 N. Quentin Road. According to the Palatine website:

Construction is nearly complete on this new fire station on the corner of Quentin Road and Echo Lane. It replaces Station 81’s old facility on Dundee Rd. with one better located to serve our residents in the northwestern section of Palatine, as well as one that can more efficiently fill the needs of 21st century fire / rescue operations. We moved into this station and began to run calls from this location on May 2, 2011.

Station 81 is staffed by three members; typically a Lieutenant and two firefighter / paramedics. They staff either the quint or the ambulance, depending on the nature of the call. Any support apparatus then respond from other stations. In addition to Quint and Ambulance 81, this station houses our Reserve Squad and our Reserve Command vehicle.

Palatine Station 81 is farther west than the previous station which was inherited from the Palatine Rural Fire Protection District. Larry Shapiro photo

Previously, Palatine ran out of this station on Dundee Road. Larry Shapiro photo

Previous posts during the new station construction can be found HERE and HERE.

Tags: Larry Shapiro, new fire station, Palatine Fire Department, Palatine Fire Station 81

IL companies assist with Pleasant Prairie WI Box Alarm

May 21

Posted by bgshap in Apparatus on-scene, Fire Department News, Fire Service News, Reader submission | Comments off

Jeff Rudolph again traveled across the border on Thursday to a fire in Wisconsin and had the following description:

Pleasant Prairie, WI pulled box 56-01 to the Box Alarm level for a fire at Dejno’s Inc @ 7533 75th St. Fire was showing on arrival from a roof top hopper unit that is used to load saw dust. Winthrop Harbor, IL went change of quarters to Pleasant Prairie Sta.1 and Newport 1415 went to the scene. Mutual aid companies also came from Bristol, Somers, Kensoha, and Salem. One FF was slightly injured and was treated and released at the scene. Extensive overhaul had to be done to make sure all of the smoldering dust was extinguished.

Pleasant Prairie WI Fire Department commercial fire 5-19-11

Firefighters from Newport Township went to work on the roof. Jeff Rudolph photo

Pleasant Prairie Truck 5631 setup to the roof of the industrial building. Jeff Rudolph photo

Pleasant Prairie Tanker 5615 supplies water to companies at the scene. Newport Engine 1415 is seen alongside. Both are Pierce units. Jeff Rudolph photo

Pleasant Prairie Engine 5612 was also pumping at the scene. It is a 2010 Pierce Quantum pumper/tanker. Jeff Rudolph photo

Additional images from the scene can be seen on Jeff’s Flickr site HERE.

Tags: Dust Bin Collector Fire, Jeff Rudolph, MABAS Box Alarm, Newport Township FPD, Pierce Quantum, Pierce Saber, Pleasant Prairie WI Fire Department, pumper tanker, pumper/tanker

New position for X-Beach Park Assistant Chief Orusa

May 21

Posted by bgshap in Fire Service News, Reader submission | Comments off

The Town of Fishers, IN released the following information recently;

Deputy Named Interim Fishers Fire Department Chief

Steven Orusa to lead Following Former Chief’s Resignation

FISHERS, IN –Fishers Town Council has named Deputy Chief Steven Orusa to the position of Interim Fire Chief following Chief Kenneth Lay’s resignation Thursday morning. Orusa has been Deputy Chief of the Fishers Fire Department for over a year, previously being Assistant Fire Chief of the City of Beach Park, IL.

“In his time as Deputy Fire Chief, Steve Orusa has exemplified the definition of a leader,” said Fishers Town Council President Scott Faultless. “During the past year he has led the creation of several vital programs in the Fire Department integral to its success. We are very lucky to have such a strong leader ready to step up as the new Interim Fire Chief.”

The Fishers Town Council will look to permanently fill the Fire Chief position at the upcoming May 31^st Town Council meeting.

Chief Steve Orusa is a 25-year veteran who oversaw a full-time department of 117 members in the City of Waukegan. He has held additional positions as Training Officer, Flight Medic, Dive Team Rescue Leader, Hazardous Materials Teach Member, Director of Fire Academy, and Terrorism Task Force Unifies Command Instructor.

As Deputy Chief of the Fishers Fire Department, Orusa led the creation of a post incident analysis program to improve safe and effective service delivery by examining past performance. He also created an incident management team; some of whose members will be serving on the team managing the Super Bowl in 2012.

Chief Orusa is a frequently invited speaker on public safety leadership and development techniques. He has provided analysis on public safety diving for USA Today, Fire Chief Magazine, Fire Engineering Magazine, Dive Training Magazine, and has also appeared on MSNBC, FoxNews and CNN to provide expert analysis on water rescue disaster response.

Thanks to Drew Smith for finding this.

Tags: Beach Park Fire Department, Chief Steven Orusa, Deputy Chief Drew Smith, Fishers IN Fire Department

Wheeling 2-11 alarm fire 5-19-11

May 20

Posted by bgshap in Apparatus on-scene, Fire, Fire Service News | Comments off

Wheeling IL Fire Department 2-11 townhouse fire 5-19-11

Upon arrival, fire companies were met by a large fire on the exterior of the townhouse that had communicated into the unit. Larry Shapiro photo

The Wheeling Fire Department received multiple calls shortly before 11PM reporting a fire along the outside wall of a four-unit townhouse on Ottawa Court in the Tahoe Village complex. Upon the arrival of police officers, the address was corrected to 573 Custer Court. The response was upgraded to a Code 4 working fire before the first fire units arrived on the scene based on the calls that were coming into the dispatch center. Companies arrived to find heavy fire that had full control of the exterior wall and had communicated into the first and second floors in addition to the attic. Mutual aid companies reported seeing the header against the dark sky from several miles away.

Before a permanent water supply could be established, firefighters used tank water to knock down the exterior fire. Larry Shapiro photo

All of the residents were out of the building when the fire department arrived and went to work. There was an initial concern about the establishment of a permanent water supply and the alarm was quickly upgraded to a MABAS Box Alarm and then to a second alarm. Heavy fire initially kept companies from entering the unit. later, a mayday was called for a firefighter working on the second floor. He sustained a knee injury but was able to exit the building on his own and later refused medical treatment on the scene.

Firefighters use a hand line to darken the fire on the exterior in the 'C' Sector. Larry Shapiro photo

The fire was held to the end unit with the neighboring unit sustaining some minor smoke damage and drywall damage from companies checking for extension. Apparently the homeowner had been cooking in a smoker along the exterior wall which is believed to be the cause of the fire.

The fire had a hold on the attic of the end unit but was knocked down before it could communicate to the next unit. Larry Shapiro photo

Mutual aid was from Arlington Heights, Buffalo Grove, and Long Grove on the Code 4 alarm. The Box Alarm brought Rolling Meadows, Des Plaines, Prospect Heights, North Maine, Glenview, Northbrook, and Elk Grove Township. The 2nd Alarm brought companies from Morton Grove, Niles, Lake Zurich, Palatine, Deerfield, and Northfield.

Firefighters perform overhaul on the exterior of the unit near the point of origin. A gas grille and a smoker were stored in this area and the smoker was reportedly being used too close to the structure. Larry Shapiro photo

Larry Shapiro and Tim Olk both took in the fire. Larry submitted several images and has a gallery HERE. Tim has a gallery HERE.

Tags: 2-11 alarm fire, Larry Shapiro, MABAS Box Alarm, structure fire, Tim Olk, townhouse fire, Wheeling Fire Department

New ambulance for McHenry Township

May 19

Posted by bgshap in Fire Department News, Fire Service News, New Delivery, Reader submission | 5 Comments

Martin Nowak spotted a recent delivery from Osage Ambulances for the McHenry Township Fire Protection District of a 2011 Type I unit on a Ford F450 chassis.

Tags: Martin Nowak, McHenry Twnship Fire Protectino District, Osage Ambulance, Type I ambulance

Long Distance follow-up

May 19

Posted by bgshap in Fire Service News, Reader submission | Comments off

Last year we posted twice about something a bit out of our local area … enormous wildfires in Israel. A post HERE about the use of a Boeing 747 converted for use as an air tanker and HERE about the international mobilization to offer assistance. Bill Post, a frequent reader and source of information about the Chicago Fire Department, found an article HERE that he thought would be an interesting followup to the December posts. It details a recent wildfire in Israel that was handled by the new squadron of air tankers which was purchased in response to the deadly Carmel fire last year.

The IAF’s new firefighting squadron carried out its first operational sortie successfully Tuesday. The squadron was called in to fight a blaze that broke out at Hamat Gader, near the Sea of Galilee.

The field conditions made it impossible for fire trucks to approach the site, and the firefighting effort was made solely from the air.

The planes were scrambled from Megiddo Airfield, where the unit’s commanders set up a command room near the Fire Brigade headquarters. A total of 15 sorties from Megiddo to the fire location were carried out. Eleven tons of fire retardant material were dropped on the blaze.

The squadron is named after Elad Riven, a young volunteer who perished while fighting the huge Carmel fire earlier this year. The IAF’s lack of firefighting planes made it impossible to effectively combat that blaze, and the result was a horrible national tragedy in which 44 people died.

(IsraelNationalNews.com)

A video of the air drops can be seen HERE.

In January, IsraelNationNews.com posted this article about the air tanker purchase;

Israel will buy six firefighting planes from Canada for a total price of about $200 million. Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu met Canadian defense minister Peter Gordon MacKay on Monday and worked out the details of the purchase. MacKay is visiting Israel.

The squadron will be named the Elad Squadron, in honor of 16 year old fire brigade volunteer Elad Riven, who was the youngest victim of the Carmel fire tragedy.

At the memorial ceremony for Riven, Netanyahu told his grieving family: “We salute you and the wondrous son you raised. One cannot always say about a boy who was taken after 16 years that he leaves us a legacy, but we can say it in the case of Elad – a legacy of infinite devotion to nation and state, a legacy of purity of heart and of clear, simple heroism.”

“Elad went to the heavens as a hero, and from the heavens, the pilots of the Elad Squadron will fly in order to save lives as Elad did,” he added.

Tags: air tanker, Bill Post, israel Fire Serivce, Wildfire in Israel, wildland fire

Wish comes true for firefighter’s daughter

May 18

Posted by bgshap in Fire Service News, Reader submission | 3 Comments

Paige received a customized set of turnout gear this afternoon. Tim Olk photo

Firefighters from the Lincolnshire-Riverwoods Fire Protection District and Chicago firefighters at O’Hare Airport teamed up to support the family of a Lincolnshire-Riverwoods (LRFPD) firefighter that went to Disney World in Orlando thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. Paige Spicka is six years old and was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome. She has endured multiple surgeries since birth. Today, from 10AM-NOON, LRFPD members, their families, and friends of the Spicka family attended a going away party at Lincolnshire-Riverwoods Station 53 complete with Disney movies, cake, an obstacle course, and a pinata.

Paige and her parents share a moment at the send off party. Tim Olk photo

Paige Spicka's wish came true today as she and her family went on a week's vacation to Disney World. Tim Olk photo

After the party at Station 53 was over, it was time to head to O’Hare Airport for the flight to Orlando. RED Center toned out an overhead dispatch for Lincolnshire-Riverwoods Engine 51 to respond to O’Hare Airport to deliver Paige and her family for their flight. They all strapped into Engine 51 for the trip which included a command car. Paige’s pink car seat was secured into the officer’s seat in the cab for the journey.

Paige exits the party and leads everyone into the apparatus bay for the obstacle course. Later she broke a pinata filled with candy for the long flight by swinging a short pike pole. Tim Olk photo

Paige settles comfortably into the officer's seat and communicates over the headset with her driver (her dad) so he knows that she's ready to go. Tim Olk photo

When Engine 51 got to Mannheim Road, they were met by 5-1-2 and Squad 7 for the trip to departures. Chicago firefighters presented paige with a CFD t-shirt and they escorted her into the terminal and to the gate. The personnel that came from Lincolnshire was escorted to the jetway on the field-side of the terminal and met the family there for a final send off.

CFD companies from O'Hare escort Engine 51 with paige on-board to the terminal for the flight to Orlando. Tim Olk photo

The Lincolnshire contingent followed CFD companies to the departure area. Tim Olk photo

Paige is greeted by the CFD firefighters who will escort her to the gate. Tim Olk photo

Paige shows off her new CFD t-shirt courtesy of the firefighters at O'Hare. Tim Olk photo

Thanks to Tim Olk for spending the better part of his day for such a worthy purpose. He has an extensive gallery HERE.

From the Lincolnshire-Riverwoods Fire Protection;

Today was a day of celebration. We celebrated a gift, a six year old gift named Paige Spicka. Paige was born with hypoplastic left heart syndrome, basically with half her heart. She has gone through more in her short time than most would in their lifetime. Paige was granted “her wish” to go to Disney World in Orlando Florida to meet Mickey Mouse and sleep in Cinderella’s castle through the Make-A-Wish Foundation, Wisconsin Chapter. Paige was given a send off by her second family, the Lincolnshire Riverwoods Professional Fire Fighters Association Local 4224, Chief Fred Kruger and the Lincolnshire Riverwoods Fire Department. Paige was surrounded by friends and family and driven to O’Hare International Airport where she was met by our brothers of Chicago Fire Department Local 2 and escorted to the gate for her trip. The local would like to give our sincere thanks to Chief Kruger and staff, Assistant Deputy Fire Commissioner John McNicholas (CFD), Deputy District Chief Jerry Knapp (CFD), Larry Langford (CFD), Karen Pride (Chicago Aviation), Tim Olk, and the crews from CFD E-10, HazMat 5-1-2, and Squad 7.

Tags: charity, Chicago Fire Department, Lincolnshire-Riverwoods FPD, Make-A-Wish Foundation, O'Hare Airport firefighters, Paige Spicka, Tim Olk

Chicago Still & Box 5-17-11

May 18

Posted by bgshap in Apparatus on-scene, Fire, Fire Service News, Reader submission | Comments off

Steve Redick took in a Still & Box Alarm last night at 3636 Grenshaw. The fire originated on the back porches of a three-story 6 flat unit which appeared to be vacant. Engine 107 was the second engine in and was ordered to the rear where they opened up with their deck gun to knock done the bulk of the fire before taking a hydrant at the end of the alley.