Northwest Homer Fire Department District Receives Vehicle Donation From CITGO Lemont Refinery

LEMONT, Ill., March 1, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The Northwest Homer Fire Department District, which serves the City of Lockport and the Villages of Homer Glen and Lemont, received a donation of 28 disabled vehicles from the CITGO Lemont Refinery for extrication training as part of its 2012 Vehicle Machinery Operations Certification. Through the Refinery's contribution, CITGO enabled 36 firefighters to practice simulated scenario training using real vehicles.  

"We are thankful to the CITGO Lemont Refinery for donating to the program," said Mike Kucaba, a firefighter at Northwest Homer. "The used vehicles were a valuable training aid for all the firefighters from surrounding communities. Thanks to CITGO, we were able to make this year's training possible."

Fire department personnel from 10 nearby communities, including Lockport, Lemont and Homer, attended the Northwest Homer Fire Department District training, which was conducted in the fourth quarter of 2012. Employees from the CITGO Lemont Refinery Fire Department also participated in the training, which included a simulated reconstruction of a multiple-vehicle accident scene. During the event, three dozen participants worked together to practice extrications on the 28 vehicles provided by CITGO Lemont Refinery under three different scenarios: advanced vehicle stabilization, severe side-impact collisions and victim removal. Each group of firefighters used critical knowledge and proficient extrication techniques to increase their effectiveness at the rescue scene in a safe and efficient manner. These training scenarios are difficult to complete without real-world applications on actual vehicles.

The goal of the 2012 Vehicle Machinery Operations Certification through the Office of Illinois State Fire Marshall was to provide fire service personnel with the knowledge and skills needed to perform advanced vehicle extrication and special rescue operations at emergency scenes. Safety was an important component of the training, and participating fire departments brought a wide variety of safety equipment and tools to use for the different scenarios. The week-long program covered all the objectives for technical search and rescue incidents so that the firefighters have the capabilities to successfully deliver vehicle and machinery rescue in their jurisdictions.

The CITGO Lemont Refinery employs more than 800 local residents on a full-time and contract basis in support of the local economy. While Lemont Refinery employees produce high-quality fuels for a large portion of the network of nearly 6,000 locally owned CITGO stations across the country, they also make a major positive impact on the community. Each year more than 2,500 volunteer hours and thousands of dollars are given in support of community programs such as Muscular Dystrophy Association, United Way and a variety of environmental and preservation programs. For more information on the CITGO Lemont Refinery, visit www.citgorefining.com/Lemont.

CITGO, based in Houston, is a refiner, transporter and marketer of transportation fuels, lubricants, petrochemicals and other industrial products. The company is owned by PDV America, Inc., an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A., the national oil company of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela. For more information, visit www.CITGO.com.

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