The Forest Park Fire Department will start hiring firefighters on an ongoing basis in an effort to become fully staffed and decrease burnout.
At the Oct. 13 village council meeting, commissioners unanimously approved to change the process the village uses to hire firefighters to one that’s on a rolling basis. The passed ordinance approved the hiring of Standard & Associates, a consulting firm specializing in employee testing and assessment systems, to help the village for a trial period of about half a year.
Historically, the village has administered firefighter tests as needed, and the list of those who passed the test remained active for two years or until everyone on it was hired — then the village would host another test, since they can only hire from the list.
“The old way that we were doing it was not cost effective because there’s this national firefighter shortage,” Fire Chief Lindsey Hankus told the Review. Years ago, she said there would be dozens of firefighters on the list, but that’s not the case anymore. “The old way of testing is a months-long process, and once the list is established, there might only be like six people on the list,” since some might not have proper qualifications or have already been hired by another fire department.
The new rolling process allows the village to collect applicants about every 30 days and hold a test for those applicants. Those who meet qualifications will be added to the list the fire department hires from. They will still be eligible to be hired off the list for two years.
“Hopefully, there’s a few candidates that we can still capitalize on because we’ll always be accepting applications,” Hankus said. “We won’t miss opportunities.”
The Forest Park Fire Department is fully staffed at 27 firefighters and currently has 23. The village recently hired two new firefighters, and another will be retiring at the end of the month.
But even a fully staffed fire department might not be enough to address the burnout that the Forest Park Fire Department is currently facing right.
“Right now, the overtime is so overwhelming for them that they’re 100% burned out,” Hankus said. “Once we get to 27 [firefighters] and the guys aren’t working so much overtime, I feel like we could take a couple months and reassess. …We definitely do need increased staff, we just don’t have the money to do it.”
Since the Northern Illinois Transit Authority replaced the Regional Transit Authority in September, the Cook County Sheriff’s Office is now leading a task force where its deputies patrol Chicago-area trains daily. Hankus said their presence on the CTA caused the Forest Park Fire Department’s call volume to drop a little initially.
“I think for a whole week we didn’t go to the CTA, but now it’s kind of picking up,” Hankus said.
Last year, the Forest Park Fire Department made over 600 calls to CTA stations. With NITA now overseeing the CTA, the village will be reimbursed over $1 million for responding to those calls.
Fire station renovations
This summer, the village received an OSHA complaint from multiple firefighters who reported respiratory ailments, headaches and skin irritation after spending at least 24 hours inside the fire station. The symptoms were attributed to a degrading fiberglass duct liner in the HVAC system above their sleeping quarters, so firefighters moved beds into the station’s two TV rooms and an office.
The Illinois Department of Labor visited the station in July to sample air in multiple rooms and analyzed the results. While Hankus said the air quality was satisfactory, the tests didn’t include fiberglass. So Hankus requested the village approve a separate air quality test, which she still hasn’t seen results from.
“Once I got the results from the state, I left it up to them,” Hankus said of letting firefighters choose where to sleep. She said some have returned to the bunk room, while others still sleep in the office or TV rooms.
The fire station’s bunk room hadn’t been updated since it was built in the 1970s as an addition to the 120-year-old firehouse.
The Forest Park Fire Department has received a $1.5 million grant from the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity that will help finance a remodel of the station’s second floor, including the bunk room. But the village can’t use that money until the spring.
The Forest Park Fire Department still needs a new fire engine, and it will be getting a new fire truck next month. After they secure the truck, they will need to install decals and equipment, then have all firefighters train with it.
“Even though we will have possession of it, there’s still going to be some work that needs to be done before it goes into service,” Hankus said.