The Barrington Courier Review has an article on the Barrington Countryside FPD a year after separating from the Barrrington Fire Department:

Almost one year after the Barrington Countryside Fire Protection District’s separation from the Barrington Fire Department, the BCFPD has purchased several new emergency vehicles and upgraded existing ones.

Under a fleet modernization program, the last vehicle to enter service was a fire engine that holds 1,250 gallons of water … Two new ambulances and two 3,000-gallon water tenders were also purchased earlier this year.

“We replaced or altered every apparatus we had,” BCFPD Trustee Thomas Rowan said. “It changes our response structure tremendously.”

The year-long fleet modernization project cost $1.74 million, all purchased with reserve funds.

“The equipment became much more affordable than we thought it would be,” said Rowan. “In today’s market, we did very well.”

“We can show up at a fire with close to 8,000 gallons of water. We didn’t have that flexibility a year ago,” he said. “We can come in and have all the water without having to wait. We’re minutes ahead of where we were before.”

Also, BCFPD fire engines are now equipped with advanced life support tools to keep a patient stabilized.

An additional fire engine and two additional ambulances also give firefighter/paramedics enhanced ability to respond to multiple calls at once, which can be particularly useful in severe weather when call volume tends to be higher. Rowan said this also decreases the BCFPD’s dependence on neighboring departments.

The district also modernized some of their existing equipment like a 2,000-gallon water tanker that has been converted to a quick response engine.

“Our neighbors love us having those tenders,” Asta said. “Those tenders help our neighbors who are in the same situation as us, so it provides them that same level as well.”

Rowan said the additional vehicles were purchased with reserve funds set aside in anticipation of the separation from the Barrington Fire Department.

“We probably don’t have to worry about tenders for another 20 years. We’re hoping the engines will be 12 to 15 years in front line service,” he explained.

Because the BCFPD purchased the new vehicles with reserve funds, the financial burden did not fall on district taxpayers. Also, the fleet modernization will allow the district to move ahead with plans on building a third station without having to procure additional vehicles.

Wenschhof said the BCFPD received approximately 1,400 calls between Jan. 1 and Nov. 1, 2014, most of which were emergency medical calls.

Tags: Barrington Countryside Fire Protection Distric, Deputy Fire Chief Donald Wenschhof