I am happy to serve as Chief for the French Village Fire Protection District. The French Village F.P.D. was formed in 1946. For 66 years a group of dedicated men and women have provided their skills and ability to combat fires, rescue people injured in car accidents and help during medical emergencies for absolutely no pay. Your firefighters are constantly being trained in the latest techniques for emergency medical care, fire suppression, along with technical rescue and extrication. They stand ready to safely do whatever it takes when they are called for assistance.

We are constantly busy doing things to better serve the fire district as a whole. We spend countless numbers of hours trying to improve the department in a variety of ways. Your firefighters must be certified Fire fighter II through the State of Illinois Fire Marshal’s office before they are taken off probationary status. We train every Monday night for three hours. We clean the stations weekly including the fire apparatus. We perform building safety inspections at least once a year; however, we inspect the local hotels four times a year and we inspect the restaurants twice a year. We preplan buildings to gain knowledge of the layout of the building in case we have to respond to an incident and educate our firefighters in the event there is some type of special hazards associated with that building. We inspect fire hydrants on a yearly basis to help make sure the fire hydrants are in good working order in case the need arises. We check the fire equipment weekly in order to make sure it is in top working order. There are so many things your firefighters do daily, weekly, monthly and yearly in order to maintain equipment and make sure we follow the NFPA (National Fire Protection Association) guidelines. I can’t possible spell out all of the line items the firefighters do every year and year out.

The French Village F.P.D provides free smoke detectors to elderly and handicap people in the fire district. We will install or assist you with your detectors if you need so. We assist people who may not know just where to mount a smoke or carbon monoxide detector. Maybe the detector just needs a new battery or you’re not sure what to do or what kind of battery is needed.

Fire prevention training is offered to groups or individuals. We visit the local schools and daycare to teach them about fire safety. We offer a CPR class free of charge. If you would like to visit your local fire department stop by and speak with the firefighters and ask about a tour.

I welcome your ideas and comments. Please feel free to call station #1 397-0288 or fill out the contact form.

Sincerely,
Alfred LaPointe Jr.
Fire Chief
French Village Fire Protection