[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Mendota as Ch. 5 of the 1998 Code. Amendments noted where applicable.]
A. 
Department created. There is hereby created an executive department of the municipal government of the City of Mendota, which shall be known as the "Fire Department," and shall consist of a Fire Chief, and such other persons as may from time to time be approved by the City Council.
B. 
Organization; officers. The several members of the Fire Department shall, at their first meeting in each fiscal year of the City, organize by electing two officers to be known as "Secretary" and "Treasurer," respectively, of the Fire Department, and such other officers as they may deem expedient, who shall hold office for which qualified. Such officers shall serve in this capacity without extra compensation.
C. 
Chairman. The Fire Chief shall be ex-officio Chairman of the Fire Department and shall, when possible, preside at all meetings.
D. 
Secretary. It shall be the duty of the Secretary of the Fire Department to keep the minutes and records of all meetings of the Fire Department; to issue calls for special meetings when so ordered by the Fire Chief; to keep an accurate account of all moneys and funds of such Department coming into his hands and turn all such over to the Treasurer at least once a month, taking his receipt therefor. He shall audit all claims against the funds of said Department and shall draw all warrants for the payment of the same upon the Treasurer. He shall also perform such other duties as may be required by the bylaws and rules of the Department.
E. 
Treasurer. It shall be the duty of the Treasurer of the Fire Department to receive all moneys belonging to the Department; to issue a receipt to every person paying money into the treasury of such Department, and to pay out such money only upon the warrant of the Secretary, as provided herein. He shall keep an accurate account of all receipts and disbursements of the Department and shall make a monthly report of the same in writing to the City Council at its first regular meeting in each month; and shall make an annual report to the Council at the last regular meeting in the fiscal year of all such receipts and disbursements for the preceding year. He shall turn over all records and funds in his possession and control as such Treasurer to his successor in office immediately upon completion of his term of office, taking receipt therefor.
F. 
Firefighter-driver-engineers.
(1) 
Before an individual may commence regular full-time employment as a firefighter, he must have been certified by the Illinois State Fire Marshal as a Firefighter II, as having successfully completed an approved training course as provided in said Act.
(2) 
The Firefighter II training must be completed by the trainee within his probationary period of 36 months, for regular volunteers.
(3) 
The Board of Fire and Police Commissioners is hereby instructed and directed to make the necessary amendments to the Personnel Rules, the Manual of Rules of the City of Mendota Fire Department, and Rules of said Board of Fire and Police Commissioners in order to require that any person appointed to the Fire Department of the City of Mendota shall not become a full-time Engineer of the Mendota Fire Department unless and until he shall complete, pursuant to said Illinois Fire Protection and Training, his initial employment.
A. 
Creation; appointment. There is hereby created the office of Fire Chief, who shall be the head of the Fire Department. He shall hold his office for the term of one year and until his successor shall be appointed and qualified. The Fire Chief and the Assistant Fire Chief of the Mendota Fire Department shall be appointed by the Mayor with the advice and consent of the City Council. Said appointments will be for one-year terms and shall be made at the first meeting in May of each year.
B. 
At all times hereunder, the Fire Chief must be a full-time driver/engineer for the City of Mendota, while the Assistant Chief shall be filled by either a full-time driver/engineer or a volunteer of the City of Mendota Fire Department.
C. 
Powers and duties. The Fire Chief shall be the Chief of the Fire Department and subordinate to the Mayor and shall have full command and control of the Department and over all the members thereof. He shall have the general care and custody of all property and equipment belonging to the Fire Department, and he shall personally attend to all repairs required to be made upon the same.
D. 
Command at fires. The Fire Chief shall attend all fires and take command of the organization, and shall see that the several members of the Fire Department faithfully perform their respective duties. With the concurrence of the Mayor or any two Aldermen, the Fire Chief may order the tearing down and removal of any building, or may direct the blowing up of any building, when, in either case, is shall be deemed necessary to check the progress of any fire.
E. 
Enforce ordinances. It shall be the special duty of the Fire Chief to see that all the ordinances of the City, having any relation to the protection of life or property of the City from fire, or relating to the Fire Department, are enforced, and that all the members of the Fire Department are faithful in the discharge of their duties.
F. 
Inspections. It shall be the duty of the Fire Chief to visit and examine, or cause the same to be done, all places reported to him as being liable to cause or occasion the breaking out or spread of fire, and to make such orders in relation thereto as the protection of life and property of the City may require.
G. 
Prescribe rules. It shall be the duty of the Fire Chief, in conjunction with the Mayor, to prescribe such rules and regulations for the government of the Fire Department as they shall deem expedient for the welfare and efficiency of the Department.
H. 
Preferring charges. The Fire Chief may, either upon his own knowledge or upon information communicated to him by others, prefer formal charges to the Fire Department against any member of the Fire Department for incompetency, neglect of duty, disobedience of orders or violation of any of the standing rules and regulations of the Department; and pending such charges, shall suspend such delinquent member from duty, and such suspension shall continue in force until the charges can be investigated by the Fire Department and final action taken thereon by the Department.
I. 
Records; annual report.
(1) 
The Fire Chief shall keep, in a book to be provided by the City for that purpose, a full and accurate record of all the property and equipment of the Fire Department, together with a record of all transactions in the Fire Department, and of all property placed in his charge and custody, and he shall, annually, at the close of each fiscal year, make a written report to the City Council, showing the condition of the Department under his management, together with a complete list of all fires occurring in the City during the preceding year, the date and location of each fire, the name of the owner of the property destroyed, the cause of the fire, loss incurred thereby, amount of insurance, and such information as he may deem important to the City.
(2) 
Successor. On the expiration of his term of office, or his resignation or removal therefrom, the Fire Chief shall, on demand, deliver to his successor in office all books, records, apparatus, equipment and property of every description in his possession, belonging to the City or appertaining to his office.
There are hereby created and prescribed five fire districts in the City of Mendota, as follows:
A. 
All of the First Ward, except that part contained in Fire District No. 5, shall constitute Fire District No. 1.
B. 
All of the Second Ward shall constitute Fire District No. 2.
C. 
All of the Third Ward shall constitute Fire District No. 3.
D. 
All of the Fourth Ward, except that part contained in Fire District No. 5, shall constitute Fire District No. 4.
E. 
Those parts of the First and Fourth Wards, bounded as follows, shall constitute Fire District No. 5: commencing at a point at the intersection of Meriden Street and the right-of-way of the Illinois Central Railroad Company, thence east on Meriden Street and Twelfth Street to the right-of-way of the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad Company, thence northeasterly along the right-of-way to its intersection with First Avenue, thence north on First Avenue to its intersection with Twentieth Street, thence west on Twentieth Street and on a continuation of the line of said street to the right-of-way of the Illinois Central Railroad Company, thence southeasterly along said right-of-way to the place of beginning.
A. 
In case of fire or national emergency or civil disaster, only a duly authorized person or persons shall engage the mechanism to sound the proper alarm for fire, national emergency or civil disaster.
B. 
There shall be placed on file in the police station, in City Hall, a list of duly authorized personnel who have authority and control over the warning system, and the Police Department shall restrain any person, other than those listed as authorized personnel, from tampering with, turning in alarms, or operating the system in any way.
A. 
The Fire Department is hereby authorized and directed to furnish or use fire apparatus, equipment and personnel within a radius of three miles of the corporate limits of the City of Mendota in the preservation or conservation of life and property of any industrial plant, provided such use will in no way interfere with or hinder the protection of life and property within the corporate limits of the City, and provided that weather and road conditions safely permit such use and that said equipment, fire apparatus and personnel can be spared from municipal service.
B. 
The rates of such service shall be $150 in advance for each fiscal year or fraction thereof of the City of Mendota and the additional sum of $250 for each call to said industrial plant plus an additional $150 per hour after the first hour of service, said time to be computed from the time the fire apparatus or equipment first leaves its quarters to the time of its official return thereto.
C. 
Before any such service is rendered, any industrial plant desiring such service shall enter into a written contract with the City, which contract shall incorporate therein payment for all charges for services rendered and shall indemnify, keep and save harmless the City of Mendota and the members of the Fire Department against any loss, cost, damage, expense, judgment or liability of any kind whatsoever which the City or any Fire Department member may suffer or which may accrue against, be charged to or be recovered from said City or any member of the Fire Department, or any of the officials of the City, from or by reason, or on account of injuries to persons or property during the performance of said service between the time the fire apparatus or equipment first leaves its quarters to the time of its official return thereto.
D. 
The Fire Chief, or, in his absence, the assistant chief, is hereby given full discretion on answering any alarm from or to a contracted industrial plant.
E. 
The Mayor and the City Clerk hereby are authorized to execute a contract as above mentioned with any industrial plant situated within a three-mile radius of the corporate limits of the City of Mendota.
F. 
The Mendota Fire Department is granted authorization from the Mendota City Council, as documented, to enter into separate mutual aid agreements for cooperative fire protection as follows: Cities of LaSalle, Mendota, Peru, Oglesby, Spring Valley and the Village of Utica, Illinois.
[Added by Ord. No. 01-17-05A; amended by Ord. No. 04-18-16E; Ord. No. 12-18-23]
A. 
Responses within the City limits for accidents involving out-of-district people. As set forth by Illinois Fire Protection Districts and the Illinois State Fire Marshal (70 ILCS 705/11f), the City of Mendota Fire Department shall charge for vehicles, personnel and supplies used when responding to incidents within City limits to out-of-district people. The various rates and fees will be as established by the City Council from time to time.
B. 
Hazardous material incidents/emergency response. It shall be the duty and obligation of the responsible party to reimburse, in a timely and reasonable manner, the Mendota Fire Department for responding to a hazardous material emergency incident at the request of such emergency response agency, to cover costs incurred. Those costs for vehicles, personnel and supplies used will be as established by the City Council from time to time.
C. 
Technical rescue services – high angle rescue/recovery, confined space rescue/recovery, trench engulfment rescue/recovery, structural collapse rescue/recovery, water rescue/recovery. Charges for such services shall be as established by the City Council from time to time.
[Amended by Ord. No. 04-06-15A]
A. 
The Firefighter's Pension Board, to be known as "Board of Trustees of the Firefighter's Pension Fund for the City of Mendota, Illinois," consisting of the duly elected Mayor, City Treasurer, City Clerk, and Fire Chief, together with three other persons who shall be chosen from the active firefighters from the City of Mendota and one other person who shall be chosen from the firefighters thereof who have been retired under the "Firemen's Pension Fund Act of 1919" or under Chapter 40, Act 5, Article 4, of the Illinois Compiled Statutes.
B. 
This Board is created by authority set forth in 40 ILCS 5/4-121.
No person shall use or cause or permit to be used, or engage in the business of providing any telephone device or telephone equipment that automatically selects a public trunkline of the Police or Fire Department of the City of Mendota, County of LaSalle and State of Illinois, which then reproduces any prerecorded message to report any robbery, burglary, fire or other emergency.
[Amended by Ord. No. 04-06-15A]
Any person violating any of the provisions of this article shall be fined as set forth in Chapter 1, Article III, Penalties and Enforcement, of the City Code.
A. 
Public Act 85-143 (Smoke Detector Act, 425 ILCS 60/1 et seq.) is hereby adopted by reference hereto and incorporated in this chapter.
B. 
In addition to the penalty set forth in said statute, there is hereby adopted a separate penalty provision in addition to and as provided in this section, which shall be as set forth in Chapter 1, Article III, Penalties and Enforcement, of the City Code for the following:
[Amended by Ord. No. 04-06-15A]
(1) 
Any willful failure to install or maintain in operating condition any smoke detector required by this section.
(2) 
Any tampering with, removing, destroying, disconnecting or removing the batteries from any installed smoke detector, except in the course of inspection, maintenance or replacement of the detector.