Elected leaders get firefighter training, hear referendum pitch at Oswego district event

MONTGOMERY -- Area elected officials have a better idea of what it is like to be a firefighter courtesy of the Oswego Fire Protection District.

Office-holders from Montgomery, Oswego and Kendall County, as well as local legislators, participated in a day-long fire operations training course on March 19 at the fire district’s Station 3 on Galena Road in Montgomery.

First they donned heavy firefighter gear and learned how to extinguish a car fire by working together to train a fire hose on the flaming wreck.

Then they tore another car to pieces as they practiced with high-powered cutter and spreader tools that are used to extract victims from vehicle crashes.

Finally, each participant was fitted with a breathing apparatus before entering a metal structure where a fire was ignited. They watched as the space filled with smoke and could feel the intense heat created by the flames.

“I learned so much today and a have a greater appreciation for what they do,” Kendall County Board member Ruben Rodriguez said of the district’s firefighters at the end of the day.

Also representing Kendall County was board member Scott Gengler and board Chairman Scott Scott Gryder.

“We have a much better understanding of what these guys have to deal with,” Montgomery Village Board Trustee Steve Jungermann said, who was joined by fellow trustees Theresa Sperling, Doug Marecek and Matt Bauman.

Oswego Village Board President Troy Parlier and trustees Jennifer Jones Sinnott and Kit Kuhrt also participated, along with U.S. Rep. Lauren Underwood, D-Naperville and state Rep. Keith Wheeler, R-Oswego.

Also attending was fire district board President Richard Kuhn and Trustee Rodger Long.

The training program started with a morning-long classroom session designed to educate the officials about the fire protection district.

Lt. Joe Johnson explained that the Oswego district is unique because all of its firefighters are paramedics as well, and must have received their certification before they may test for a job with the district.

The fire district saves an estimated $100,000 in training and overtime cost by using this requirement, but the bigger benefit is a more versatile team of firefighter-paramedics.

“It’s easier for staffing when everyone is cross-trained,” Johnson said. “It really streamlines our job.”

Fire Chief John Cornish provided an example to which people could relate.

“When we get a call for a heart attack case, five firefighter-paramedics show up,” Cornish said.

Much of the discussion centered on the fire district’s proposed rescue tax which will appear on the June 28 primary election ballot.

The proposed rescue tax would increase the tax rate by 0.10%, resulting in a $99 yearly increase for the owner of a home valued at $300,000. Currently, that same homeowner is paying about $600 per year in taxes to the district.

Voters narrowly rejected the same referendum question in April of 2021.

Board President Kuhn said the district may have been overconfident when it proposed the tax increase last time and is working hard to educate the public this time around.

Kuhn said the need for the additional revenue is only growing as the district’s population continues to expand.

Two decades ago, there were about 27,000 people living with in the district’s 53-square-mile service area. Today the population is more than 70,000 and growing.

Last year, the department went on 6,346 calls for service, a record, compared with about 2,000 calls in 2002.

Without the additional $1.5 million per year that the district estimates the tax hike would produce, the current level of service will be affected, the fire command staff said.

Now, the response time for a call is 6 minutes, 19 seconds, Johnson said. He noted that a fire can double in size every 60 seconds, while the survival rate for persons suffering from cardiac arrest decreases 15% every minute without medical care.

When presented with the information on response times, Wheeler, the state lawmaker, found an argument in favor of the referendum.

Wheeler noted that insurance companies often factor in emergency response times when writing homeowner policies. If response times increase, so will insurance rates, he said.

“If we don’t invest in fire protection we may have to pay more on the back end,” Wheeler said.

The elected officials, already familiar with taxes, budgets and providing services to residents, focused many of their questions and comments on the fire district’s finances.

They learned that the district has a $12.8 million annual budget, in order to operate four fire stations manned by 66 firefighter-paramedics working 24 hours on and 48 off. The command staff includes seven individuals, and there are two civilians administrative employees as well.

As a practical matter, the district has a minimum of 19 firefighter-paramedics on duty at any time, manning the two stations in Oswego, one in Montgomery and one in Plainfield.

The increased demand for service has been accompanied by a gradual shift in the types of emergencies to which the district must respond.

“Most of our calls are dominated by medical emergencies,” Johnson said.

“That’s why all of our fire apparatus is equipped with medical equipment to start care and treatment without delay,” said Deputy Chief Josh Flanders. “No matter what we do, time is important.”

Most people are aware that a firefighter’s job is dangerous and that responding to a call could end in serious injury or death.

“Stepping into the job is probably the scariest thing,” Johnson said.

But people probably are not aware that while 40% of Americans will be diagnosed with cancer, about 60% of firefighters will die of the disease, because of exposure to smoke and toxic materials.

“This is a job that is inherently dangerous,” said Oswego Firefighters Union Local 4774 President Rob Carpenter. “If you take on this job you may find out this job is not for you.”

Carpenter and Cornish both emphasized that the district administration and the union have good working relationship.

The Montgomery station is located on a large piece of property. Next to the station there also sits an odd-looking structure created from several giant steel ocean-going shipping containers stacked on top of each other.

It is at this training facility where firefighters simulate structure fires and practice skills like rappelling down a rope.

Outside, during the training session to put out the car fire, politics was set aside as Congresswoman Underwood and county board President Gryder, who may be facing off against each other for the 14th Congressional District seat next November, worked side-by-side to handle the hose line.

Inside the giant steel container as the fire blazed and the smoke billowed, the elected officials passed around and looked through a thermal imaging device, allowing them to see what a firefighter sees when trying to rescue the victims of a structure fire.

Later, after shedding their firefighting gear, the group watched as paramedics demonstrated their lifesaving skills on a practice dummy, emphasizing the fact that 65% of the calls for service are medical emergencies.

At the end of the day, the elected officials came away more than a little impressed.

“We have a much better understanding of what these guys have to deal with, said Jungermann, one of the Montgomery trustees.

“I liked learning about all of the cross-training that they do,” said Sperling, also on the Montgomery board.

Like many of the elected officials, Sperling found it interesting to learn that the district has several firefighters who do most of the maintenance and repairs on the district’s vehicles, saving an estimated $300,000 a year.

“These guys are in it for the love of what they do,” said Jones Sinnott, the Oswego Village Board trustee. “They have to get out and share their story.”