Excerpts from the ChicagoTribune.com:
The village of Carpentersville is mourning the unexpected death Tuesday of Battalion Chief Todd Middendorf.
“He was basically one of the cornerstones of the department,” Fire Chief John-Paul Schilling said. “He was well-loved within the entire region.”
Middendorf, 46, was a resident of Carpentersville and member of the fire department for 23 years, starting as a part-timer in 1994 and moving to full time in 1997. He functioned in the role of acting deputy chief and assisted in the administration of the department.
The firefighter and paramedic is survived by his wife, Daisy, and young son, Tyler.
A Facebook post shared by the local police department and the Carpentersville Professional Fire Fighters IAFF Local 4790 said Middendorf’s death was sudden and unexpected.
To all our followers out there, this is an extremely hard post to make but we have to sadly announce the sudden and unexpected passing of our Battalion Chief Todd Middendorf. B/C Middendorf has been resident of Carpentersville and a member of our department for 23 years. Todd leaves behind a loving family including his wife and their young son. Please keep his family in your prayers as they will need them more than ever. Details on services are TBD.
According to reports, during Middendorf’s first call as a paramedic in March 1997, he and three other Carpentersville firefighter-paramedics responded to an accident involving a woman who was eight months pregnant. The woman showed no signs of life, but the crew knew they might save the child if they kept working, sending blood and oxygen through the mother and baby still in her womb.
Alerted by the paramedics, the hospital’s trauma and obstetrics teams and a neonatologist were waiting at Elgin’s Sherman Hospital and performed a rare postmortem C-section, saving the newborn’s life.
A memorial service for Middendorf is being planned.
thanks Dan
