ENGLEWOOD -- The city doesn't have any spare fire trucks, leaving at least one fire station in Englewood short -- but a Fire Department official said there's no cause for alarm.
The Englewood fire station at 7101 S. Parnell Ave. has been operating without a truck since Saturday, said Patrick Cleary, Chicago Firefighters Union Local 2 president. The truck's brakes went out, and when a crew from the firehouse brought it to the Fire Department's "shop" where spare trucks are stored, they were told the city did not have any available trucks, Cleary said.
Trucks accompany fire engines on calls. While engines are equipped with hoses, trucks have ladders and are used to remove windows and roofs to let heat and smoke escape, allowing firefighters to move deeper into buildings, Cleary said. Trucks with ladders are a key part of fire rescues, he said.
The lack of spare trucks could lengthen response times and put residents at risk, Cleary said.
However, a Fire Department spokesperson said there are still plenty of other fire trucks that can and will travel throughout the city.
"People should rest assured that when they call 911, they will get a full-service response," Fire Department spokesperson Larry Langford said.
The Englewood station's Truck 20 had not been replaced with a spare truck as of Monday morning, Langford said.
Cleary said the city has 60 functional fire trucks. According to the union's contract, the city must maintain 61 fire trucks at all times.
The city's Department of Fleet and Facility Management is responsible for repairing city-owned vehicles. The department did not immediately return a request for comment from Block Club.
Cleary said the fleet department needs to prioritize fixing the fire trucks and engines that are out of commission. By not doing so, city leaders are "risking the lives of [the] public and putting firefighters at risk," he said.
The Fire Department sends two trucks and two engines to every call; however, the department usually only ends up using one truck, Langford said.
Langford also said it's "not unusual to have a truck out of service for some time." In the meantime, other trucks will respond to calls in the area, he said.
"Our trucks go anywhere in the city that we want them to go," Langford said. "You're never more than a few blocks away from a fire house.
"This is not a safety concern for the Englewood area at all."
But Cleary said sending trucks from other stations could increase response times. The truck shortage could worsen, as three other stations had trucks that needed repairs as of Monday afternoon, he said.
"If they don't get them to work, there's not a backup truck to replace them," Cleary said.
Langford said he does not know when the Englewood station will have an operational truck again.
The firefighters union has been battling for a new contract for three years. During contract negotiations, the union has pushed for new equipment, including 20 additional ambulances, which would bring the city up to 100. Much of the department's current equipment is aging, Cleary said.