Fire Chief Reprimanded For Using Fire Truck For Personal Uses

A community took action after seeing a Watchdog 10 story about a fire chief’s use of public property.

Trustees in the Village of Bremen told Chief Joseph L. Westenbarger that he was out of line for using a fire truck for personal uses.

A picture given to Watchdog 10 showed Westenbarger using the truck to fix a hole in the roof of a building owned by Westenbarger. The picture showed the truck hoisting workers to the roof.

In addition to issuing a verbal warning to Westenbarger, trustees also set down a policy that says that any future use of fire department equipment for personal reasons would require a 2/3 vote.

Westenbarger told Watchdog 10 last week that fire equipment was routinely used to help firefighters and community members.

“The trustees said that it was OK for volunteers and people on the fire department to borrow equipment for personal use,” Westenbarger said.

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August 16, 2012: Fire Chief Caught Using Fire Truck For Personal Uses