Excerpts from ab7chicago.com:
There were 15 to 18 suspicious fires Saturday night in Gary, forcing them to call at least a dozen different fire departments for assistance. All of the structures were vacant and no injuries were reported.
Arson was suspected in previous fires. Gary fire officials have not provided additional information about whether the incidents were related.
From Tim Olk
Tim Olk photo
Jul 11
Excerpts from the ChicagoTribune.com:
An in-house firefighting crew is set to begin serving the Gary/Chicago International Airport Sept. 1. The transition from city firefighters to the private airport-based firefighters was expected to begin in June. That deadline wasn’t met, so the airport authority approved an extension of an agreement with the city to provide airport rescue and firefighting services through Aug. 31.
About six to eight Gary firefighters are based at the airport daily. They’ll be replaced by new personnel who will be trained and certified. The change will be a cost-saver. Personnel still need to be hired and the Gary Fire Department is vetting applicants. The new hires will be cross-trained as not only firefighters, but as operations workers, as well and will staff the airport 24 hours a day and be considered AvPORTS’ employees. Revenue from a compact agreement with the city of Chicago will be used to support the fire and rescue staffing.
On Aug. 16-18, the airport will again serve as the staging site for the Chicago Air and Water Show.
thanks Dennis
Excerpts from the nwitimes.com:
City leaders expect a modern new fire station to rise this coming year in the Glen Park neighborhood, despite doubts about the future of the fire department as a whole. Officials broke ground near 49th and Pennsylvania Street for construction of $2.8 million facility. About a dozen young firefighters were on hand for the ceremony.
It will replace Station 5, which has been closed since 2012. Its crew has been housed in a section of the Calumet Township Multipurpose Center, 1900 W. 41st Ave., a homeless center.
The fire department’s staff of 163 firefighters and 13 paramedics must cover the city’s 52 square miles and beyond. They have responded to more than 5,200 fire calls and more than 13,000 requests for emergency medical services service calls since Nov. 30.
The department’s website lists 14 fire stations, but a 2009 Gary financial assessment report stated too many stations were obsolete, in disrepair and in need of significant renovation.
Gary FD Captain John Leslie Jr., president of the firefighters union, recently complained publicly about firefighters being overworked at scenes due to lack of manpower that could get worse in the coming years as more veterans retire and the city struggles to retain new hires who leave for better pay in other communities.
The mayor is proposing budget cuts for most departments in 2019 — including public safety — as part of a long-term plan to put city government on more stable, financial footing.
The new station will be built on the site of the old Pittman Elementary School. It is being financed with a loan from the U.S. Department Housing and Urban Development.
thanks Dennis
Apr 28
A few images from the FDIC in Indianapolis showing units and members from area fire departments.
Members of the East Joliet FPD at the 2018 FDIC. Larry Shapiro photo
Members of the East Joliet FPD at the 2018 FDIC. Larry Shapiro photo
Franklin Park FD Truck 2. Larry Shapiro photo
New Pierce engine for Gary. Josh Boyajian photo
Mar 18
Excerpts from the nwitimes.com:
Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson had a starring role as the CBS television series “Undercover Boss” made its eighth season premiere. The series follows executives as they slip anonymously into the rank and file of their own organization.
She saw her appearance in the show as an opportunity to highlight the city and the opportunity to acknowledge the entire group of employees, especially the ones who appeared on the segment.
Shooting of the episode took place in early August and on the show she is shown working alongside employees at the Gary Sanitary District, the city’s park department, the fire department, and the police department. A well-known and often photographed mayor, Freeman-Wilson was disguised with the help of her staff and a local beautician. It took about an hour each morning for the disguise to be applied.
She said none of the employees recognized her, although she did veto working with one employee who she thought would see through the disguise. Employees were told that she was a contestant on a game show called Tough Jobs.
Clips show Freeman-Wilson raking sludge at the sanitary district, helping to pick up trash by tossing a large container of trash into a large, 25-year-old beach cleaning vehicle at the city beaches, getting into a firefighter’s gear, and undergoing some police training. The job at the sanitary district was the worst, she said.
Based on what she learned, Freeman-Wilson said it was decided that a payloader would be a better piece of equipment to use for that on the beach. The city is also going to rehab the firehouses, beginning with the one she worked at, and obtain more police vehicles than originally intended.
The mayor said the experience with the employees left her with a real sense of pride and gratitude. The employees she worked with are underpaid and overworked, but were some of the most dedicated people she ever worked with.
thanks Asher
Excerpts from nwitimes.com:
The Gary Fire Department has received a $261,364 Federal Emergency Management Agency Assistance to Firefighters Grant to assist with operations and safety. The funds will be used for physical examinations for all fire department personnel, fitness equipment, and a training facility.
Feb 20
Excerpts from the nwitimes.com:
The Gary Fire Department plans to add five new engines to its fleet and could also start construction on a new fire station this year.
The city council has approved a resolution calling for the appropriation of $2.3 million for the lease/purchase of the engines.
The fire department currently has seven engines that are between 17 and 26 years old and in disrepair, while another three are relatively new. According to Fire Chief Paul Bradley, five of the older fire engines will be replaced with the new engines.
His goal is to have 10 fire engines in operation in the city once all the new engines have been delivered and some new firefighters are added to the department.
The trucks will be located throughout the city. Depending on how the bidding process goes, the first one or two trucks could be delivered in June with the rest delivered by the end of the year.
The new fire engines are expected to be paid for over the next seven years through a lease-purchase program. The money would come from fees collected through ambulance runs. Bradley said last year the city hired a new company that was doing a better job of collecting the fees. Some of the money was used to purchase new ambulances last year.
In addition, the city last year received a $758,044 grant for the purchase of 133 self-contained breathing apparatus devices, which supply oxygen to firefighters when they are battling fires.
Bradley also hopes the fire department can start this year on construction of a new fire station at 4900 Pennsylvania St. to house firefighters who currently are housed at the Calumet Township Multipurpose Center, 1900 W. 41st Ave.
The chief hopes the new Fire Station 5 can be completed next year. The last new fire house in the city was built in the 1990s.
The fire department is also in the process of hiring new firefighters. There are currently 182 firefighters in the city and Bradley said he would like to have a force of 200.
thanks Dan
Feb 10
Excerpts from the ChicagoTribune.com:
The Gary Fire Department will be able to purchase five new fire trucks, following the approval Tuesday by the Common Council.
Fire Chief Paul Bradley told council members the $2.3 million purchase is essential because the typical life of a vehicle is 20 years, and the department currently has seven trucks that are between 17 and 26 years old.
Bradley told the council there also are problems with some of the existing vehicles that they don’t fit properly into the fire stations, adding the issue will not be a problem with the new vehicles.
“We need to replace the apparatus we’re using now,” Bradley said, adding that the old vehicles will continue to be put to use by the department after being moved to the department’s training center on 35th Avenue.
For the finest department portraits and composites contact Tim Olk or Larry Shapiro.
