MAHOMET, Ill. (WCIA) — If you’ve been hearing more sirens in Mahomet lately, you’re not alone. The Cornbelt Fire Protection District has been hustling, with almost 50 calls for service flooding in just last week—a figure that’s rapidly becoming the status quo.
Fire Chief John Koller shared insights with WCIA, detailing how the station is evolving under the pressure of this increased demand. The blaring of sirens is becoming a familiar sound at Cornbelt Fire, reflecting a surge in emergency calls that the team has been tackling headlong.
“In the last decade, we’ve observed a staggering 70% surge in calls, which is quite significant,” Chief Koller remarked, highlighting the remarkable rise in demand for their services.
Reflecting on last week’s near-50 calls, Chief Koller, who has been leading the charge for almost 11 years, noted that back when he started, medical emergencies comprised roughly 80% of their total calls. The landscape, however, has shifted dramatically.
“What we see now is a 60/40% split,” he said. “So, 60% in the medical type calls and 40% of all the other types of calls.”
As Mahomet’s population grows, Chief Koller said more calls were expected, and plans were put in place years ago to handle them.
“We did about an eight-year plan,” he said.
That plan includes a full-time ambulance service and an engine company at the station.
“We have a tremendously quicker response time than we used to have, we’ve cut it in half,” Chief Koller said.
Patrick Brown, the Mahomet Village Administrator, said the changes had the village’s best interest in mind.
“With John’s leadership at Cornbelt, you’ve seen a big change in planning for the future,” Brown said.
More than half of Cornbelt’s staff is volunteers.
“Cornbelt was based on and built on volunteers and they’re the backbone of our department and still are to this day,” Chief Koller said.
He said the fire station gets at least new five volunteers a year. Volunteers, along with their board helping to make staffing decisions, are helping the team be better prepared to respond to a higher volume of calls.
“I’m just so proud of everything that everybody does,” Chief Koller said. “I say every day that it takes a lot to keep the big red trucks rolling down the road.”
He said the station is willing to hire more staff if the need arises.