This from chicagolandfirephotos.smugmug.com:
Cfd Responded to a fire at 112th Pl and Princeton for a fire Engines 93 and 62 (Spare) along with Truck 27 (Spare). While making entry the fire flashed over on them injuring 6 firefighters and a Mayday alert was declared along with an EMS Plan 1. Multiple firefighters were transported to Christ Hospital with non-Life threatening Injuries including minor burns and a dislocated shoulder.
Companies On SceneEngines-93/62(Spare)/75(Spare)/115Trucks-27(Spare)/62(Spare)/42/37(Spare)/along with an unknown truck in a spareChiefs-Battalions-20/21/22/23/24 DDC-2-2-5 Other 2-1-25/2-1-22/2-1-10/2-1-5/2-1-21/Along with Multiple Unmarked and unknown Chiefs carsEms-Ambos 17/71/72/79/51/37 Chiefs 4-5-6/4-4-12Other- CV 2-7-5/Squad 5&5a/OFI 4-6-6&4-6-8
chicagolandfirephotos.smugmug.com
#1 by Bill Post on February 15, 2022 - 3:00 AM
Rich S that’s an interesting piece of news as to the cost of Tower Ladder 34’s repair bill, yet they seemed to be able to survive in Engine 72’s house for the previous 25 years. About a year ago I had heard some speculation about them moving Tower Ladder 37’s rig a little to south like to Truck 30. It is interesting how Truck 34 is located inbetween Trucks 17 30 and 16 and several miles east of Truck 50 which is why Tower 34 was in a strategic location.
Short of purchasing a mid mounted Tower Ladder for Truck 34 it might make even more sense to relocate Tower 37s rig to Truck 30 as that way Truck 30 would also be off of South Chicago avenue and they would only be a half mile east of the Dan Ryan and would be near the east end of Englewood and Gresham.
As far as Tillered Aerials go that does also make alot of sense and several years ago I suggested that it would be a good idea if the CFD would purchase several Tillered Aerials to be assigned to several Truck companies in congested areas most of which are along the lake front where there is very heavy traffic and narrow streets. Such as Trucks 47 ,22 and 44 in addition of some of the ones that you had mentioned. So most of the companies along the Lake Front would be good candidates as well as few located deeper into the city such as Trucks 41,32 and probably 36 and 35 just to name a few. As that Tillered Aerials are more expensive to build then single frame Trucks I would suggest that the CFD would just purchase a few of them for just a couple of selected companies.
I ‘m sure that you probably remember those last 5 Tillered Aerials that the CFD had purchased which consisted of 5 International Harvester Tractors and 5 totally rebuilt FWD trailers with new Seagrave 100 foot aerial Ladders.
One of them was assigned to Trucks 41 and 32 which were located on narrow streets and they were also assigned to Trucks 54 and 53 which didn’t seem to make as much sense as 41 and 32 did and a few had been shifted around ;like to Truck 14 and Truck 42. None of them were permanently assigned to Lake front companies however as those 5 Trucks were purchased by Commissioner Quinn 2 years before he retired in 1978 and they were really part of his last Hurrah more then anything else.
#2 by Rich S. on February 14, 2022 - 9:08 PM
Bill, Tower 34 didn’t just have a few accidents they totaled the rig twice at the same viaduct. Not to mention that they accounted for 1/4 of the total accident budget for the entire fire department fleet. One company! As soon as the new trucks arrive T37 and T16 will switch rolls and TL16 will pick up the extra alarms duty that TL34 once had. What the CFD should be doing is getting a few Tillers back on the street in tight neighborhoods. Like Trucks 13, 25, 37, 41, 44, 52.
#3 by Bill Post on February 14, 2022 - 5:10 PM
Speaking of Trucks and Tower Ladders I really don’t understand why they needed to make Tower Ladder 34 back into a Truck company just because they made Truck 24 into a Tower Ladder.
Yes I am aware that Tower Ladder 34 had gotten into a few accidents with viaduct pillars however that seemed to be more driver error than the apparatus measurements. Tower Ladder 34 had been in service at Engine 72’s for 33 years and it has only been in the last few years that the Tower Ladder had become an issue.
If the CFD is really worried about height clearances in Tower 34’s district they can order a mid mounted Tower Ladder from E/One so the the basket is not mounted over the roof of the rig to avoid a height clearance accident.
#4 by Bill Post on February 14, 2022 - 4:41 PM
Chuck that really is an interesting idea about having language in the Local 2s contract about having Engines and Trucks in frontline service no longer then for 10 years like in New York City.
Perhaps even adding a few years like 12 to 15 years which should be plenty. Phoenix Arizona has been trying to adhere to a standard of 10 years for an Engine and 15 years for a Ladder company. An interesting thing about the Phoenix Az fire department is that they have 59 fire stations in service and at least 66 Engine companies in service as at least 7 stations are double Engine company station yet they only are running with 14 Ladder companies however each one of their Ladder companies have a Ladder Tender that is assigned to them.
What is a Ladder Tender you might ask and a Ladder Tender is what you might call a Medium duty box style Rescue Squad which carries all of the Truck company tools except for the Aerial Ladder and when the Truck gets a run it is up to the officer to decide whether to respond with the full sized Truck or with the Ladder Tender. The don’t run them together like Chicago’s Squads so it is either one rig or the other that goes. So if the Truck is dispatched on an EMS run or on Special duty run (like a pin in or a gas leak) the Trucks officer might decide to run with the Ladder Tender instead of the Truck. Fourteen Trucks is still pretty puny for City Like Phoenix however in the Phoenix Area all of the fire departments have automatic aide agreements with the neighboring fire deparments and they all use the same dispatch centers so the nearest fire company will automatically be sent even if it is from another town. I really dont see Chicago running with Ladder Tenders however as that is totally impractical for a city like Chicago.
Dallas Texas has been trying to run their Engines until they are in service for 12 years and their Trucks until they are 15 years of age. So you can possibly run the Trucks for a few years longer then the Engines.
One of the best things about Local 2s contract however is that Chicago must maintain the same amount of Engines and Trucks in service as when the contract was signed. It is also very good that they must maintain 5 man Engines and Trucks besides the variances.
#5 by Rich S. on February 14, 2022 - 3:43 PM
Dennis, I’m not saying our spares are great. I’m saying they do the job, they are spares for a reason. There are most definitely rigs I will not accept. The CIty does not follow any of the widely accepted yearly testing for apparatus either so that is a problem as well. No pump testing, Aerial testing, ladder testing. The City is more than willing to take the chance of a catastrophic accident. So we as the end user need to be vigilant about the fleet. Call in repairs or report them to safety at L2. And I understand how the contract works…. Finance holds the strings tight.
#6 by Aidan Hughes on February 14, 2022 - 11:06 AM
FDNY still has some 2008-10 Seagrave Pumpers still in frontline service and they will eventually be replaced with new 2020 Seagrave Pumpers. With CFD’s situation, There are many Spartan/Luverne Pumpers, Spartan/Crimson Pumpers and 2002 Pierce Dash 100′ Rear-mount Aerial Ladder Trucks that are still in frontline service. Some of them will eventually be replaced within the next couple of years. Engine 97’s new rig is already in service with 8 more new Engines coming within the next few months. 8 new E-One ladder trucks are also coming along with a new E-One Tower Ladder that is most likely for Tower 24. The ladder trucks may take awhile for them to be delivered due to the ongoing supply chain crisis but the Tower Ladder is already finished. CFD should replace their rigs with new ones every 5-10 years like FDNY does. The fleet shops care more about the Streets and Sanitation vehicles than the Fire Department vehicles. On the morning of February 6, Truck 17 was involved in an accident in which a driver blew a red light and crashed into the rig, significantly damaging most of the front end and the rig was sent back to the manufacturer to be rebuilt. I have a feeling that the spare rigs have been overused very frequently especially the rigs from the 90s.
#7 by harry on February 14, 2022 - 9:57 AM
chuck i agree fdny for the biggest city in the us they have a great frontline and reserve fleet but let me tell nyc has potholes that chicago would never have
#8 by Chuck on February 14, 2022 - 9:36 AM
If Local 2 were so inclined maybe they should consider putting something in future contracts like the FDNY unions do that the City can’t have front line apparatus over X number of years old. I know the City would never agree to the 10 year language like NYC but this situation is ridiculous.
#9 by Marty Coyne on February 14, 2022 - 8:38 AM
All injured firefighters were released from hospital without serious injuries.
#10 by crabbymilton on February 14, 2022 - 5:57 AM
We must keep in mind that a large city almost always has new apparatus on order. But by the time you place the entire fleet, you have to start all over again.
#11 by harry on February 14, 2022 - 2:07 AM
tim you know what kme stands for kme may work for a slower co or small town but big cities no
#12 by Dennis on February 13, 2022 - 11:23 PM
Rich S., to clear some items up here. First the contract you speak of does not say we are getting 90 engines, 50 trucks, etc. the contract is for up to that amount, meaning the city can order 10, 15, 16, or 89 engines. Etc. also it’s not at one time, it’s a 5 year contract. Secondly the reference that our spares are “ useable” is a joke. The city and the FD administration are putting our people in jeopardy everyday that most of our spares are on the street. Granted we do have some that are fine but the majority are accidents waiting to happen. Example, discharges don’t work, water tanks leaking gallons of water at a time, holes in the floorboards, tailboards hanging off on the rear, half the emergency lights don’t work, mirrors broken, windows broken, and I can go on. It’s a disgrace that we are given this to protect the citizens.
#13 by Rich S. on February 13, 2022 - 10:02 PM
Tim, the CFD like most other large metropolitan cities goes through waves of new and old apparatus. We are currently in the process of receiving new rigs we have a contract for 90 engines, 50 trucks, 10 towers , new buggies and new haz mat rigs are in the works as well. We like other cities are at the mercy of weather, accidents, everyday mechanical problems and delays on parts. Covid and current policy also has a large effect on repairs. The spare pool is old but very usable, just cause they aren’t fit to be in a calendar shoot doesn’t Mean they don’t work. It’s Chicago we are hard on the fleet
#14 by Tim on February 13, 2022 - 9:40 PM
Tim you’re right but it could be worse. Atlanta has nothing available for reserve/spares. So they just close down companies. Truck 1 has a 2013 KME tiller. They’ve been out of service for at least a month. Engine 1 broke down with no spares available. So station 1 (just west of downtown) has been closed and the guys reassigned to other companies. They are down to 3 guys on engines/trucks. Pretty bad for a big city dept. KME has been a nightmare for those guys.
#15 by Wayne on February 13, 2022 - 8:32 PM
Tower 24 has been running in a regular truck for a couple of months now probably. Can’t account for their whereabouts at this particular incident but they are not available to be used as a tower since they don’t have one.
#16 by Tim on February 13, 2022 - 5:02 PM
CFD has some real junk equipment for a city of 2.5 million
#17 by Rich s. on February 13, 2022 - 4:39 PM
Tower 24 is in a spare truck after an accident, tower 39 is in the spare aerial tower after mechanical issue, tower 37 is in a spare tower after an accident. So tower 37 & 54 are the only south side TL’s right now. Lots of companies are in spares due to lack of parts and fleet being short staffed.
#18 by harry on February 13, 2022 - 4:13 PM
i think chicago needs to start buying more new ladders engines towers ambulances cars and so on
#19 by Bill Post on February 13, 2022 - 3:38 PM
Apparently Tower 24 wasn’t available as Tower 37 was dispatched as the Box Tower Ladder on the Mayday. Truck 62 was apparently acting as the 2nd Truck to substitute for Tower Ladder 24 and Truck 42 must have been the RIT Truck company. I would guess that 5 th unidentified Truck was most likely Truck 45 or Truck 40 as they needed to send another RIT since they had to put the RIT truck to use which probably was Truck 42. I can’t help but wonder what was going on with Tower Ladder 24 as since Tower 37 was able to get on the scene it meant that Tower 24 apparently wasn’t available for a while. Maybe Tower 24 was having mechanical issues? Notice all of the spares that were being used? Even Squad 5 was still using a spare Snorkel for it’s 2nd piece.
#20 by Chuck on February 13, 2022 - 8:46 AM
Guessing the fifth unidentified truck in a spare was Tower 24, since Tower 37 went all the way out there.