As seen around … Chicago « chicagoareafire.com

As seen around … Chicago

From chicagolandfirephotos.smugmug.com:

a visit to cfd’s air mask station

home to

air mask 6-4-4

air mask 6-4-5

air mask 6-4-6

fire prevention bureau chief engineer 4-9-0

chicagolandfirephotos.smugmug.com

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Tags: Chicago FD Air Mask Service headquarters, Chicago FD Air Mask Service Unit 644, Chicago FD Air Mask Service Unit 645, Chicago FD Air Mask Service Unit 646, Chicago Fire Department, chicagolandfirephotos.smugmug.com

This entry was posted on January 9, 2022, 8:00 PM and is filed under Fire Truck photos. You can follow any responses to this entry through RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

4 Comments

#1 by Chicagoland fire photos on January 11, 2022 - 8:00 AM

I Know its 1 per Airmask Truck and then they have a DC so 1 more and then the Bureau Has some offices there too.
#2 by Daniel on January 10, 2022 - 8:46 PM

What is staffing like at this station?
#3 by Bill Post on January 10, 2022 - 4:19 PM

Fred M, SS1’s old house has been the Mask Service Headquarters since the old SS1 was relocated to Engine 42’s current quarters after 1979. It’s funny that Squad 1 is currently there with a two-piece Snorkel squad although it is not the same as SS1.

Chicago went for three years without a Snorkel squad. Several months after the Chicago firefighter’s strike in 1980, SS1 and Chicago’s seven Flying Manpower Squads were all taken out of service. In October of 1980 they were replaced with five and later six, one-piece squad companies.

On September 19th 1983, those six squads were replaced by three, two-piece squad/Snorkel companies (which the most part were Snorkel squads with a different name). Shortly before that, Squad 7 was put in service at O’Hare as a two-piece Snorkel squad.

Over the years squad/Snorkels were one-piece and then two-piece companies as there were weight and capacity issues with the one-piece units from 1987 until the early 1990’s.

Chicago has been running with four squad/Snorkel companies since 1983 which is better than during the 1970s when there was just SS1.

For a few years during the mid 1960s, Chicago had three Snorkel squads. In May 1969, SS2 and SS3 were permanently taken out of service and SS1 was the only Snorkel squad until 1979.
#4 by Fred M on January 10, 2022 - 1:07 PM

Good to see SS-1 old quarters still in use. That location is centrally located so responses anywhere in the city should be easy. Looks like some updating work was done.