Galesburg Reporter

The Monmouth City Council welcomed a new member to the city's fire department during the board's Feb. 21 meeting.

Fire Chief Casey Rexroat introduced Devin Bemowski, a transfer from the Roseville Fire Department, who was sworn in at the meeting.

Rexroat said Bemowski will go through the academy at the Illinois Fire Service Institute for his certification.

Rexroat also informed the council that he is working on acquiring a new fire engine for the department.

"I applied for a grant last month," he said. "It was actually due the second week this month, but it was something I was working on most of last month to apply for funding for a new fire engine for the department. The price of the fire engine just keeps going up and up," he said. "Just like everything else, it keeps going up. And so I requested $825,000 for this grant. And if we were to receive that, those grant funds, we would be paying 5% as a match." The means the cost to the city would be $41,000 for the new truck, Rexroat said.

"If we get to that point, then I'll bring it up again and cross our fingers between now and then," he said. "But I just want to let you know that I did apply for another one."

Rexroat gave his monthly report for the department, which had 177 total calls in January, 119 of which were solely EMS calls. The department had 30 service calls that involved installing smoke alarms and other equipment. He also announced that he has received his own certification as chief, and that several other area departments are putting together a hazard mitigation plan for the county, which he will bring before the council at a later date.

Police Chief Joe Switzer also gave his monthly report to council. The department dispatched a total of 2,228 calls, handled 964 calls, issued 106 ordinance violations (tickets), made 42 total arrests, and handled 22 accidents in January, he said. 

Switzer also gave a report on an area chiefs meeting he attended which dealt with the restructuring of the state police department and its impact on community departments. Switzer also discussed the new digital scheduling and pay system that the department is putting online. The department is also working with Axon to better understand the body camera systems that they will be implementing soon, in accordance with a 2025 state deadline.