North Judson-Wayne Township Fire Department to Get Lucas Device, Thanks to Hardesty Grant

The North Judson-Wayne Township Volunteer Fire Department will soon get a piece of potentially life-saving equipment, thanks to some grant funding. Fire Chief Joe Leszek told the town council Monday that the department has gotten a Hardesty Memorial Endowment Fund grant for a new Lucas device.

He explained that the device helps administer CPR. “You literally strap the device on, you set the depth, and it will do compressions for you,” Leszek said. “So it frees up first responders to do other things on a scene other than compressions. They’re very amazing. It’s a great device.”

The grant will fully fund the cost of the Lucas device, which is over $14,000. Leszek said North Judson-Wayne Township will be the only fire department in Starke County to have one. The Starke and Pulaski County EMS departments have had them for the past few years.

Leszek also reported that the fire department was recently awarded $800 from the Indiana Department of Natural Resources for brush fire equipment kits. “So we are starting to see the returns of our grant committee putting in multiple grants a year, trying to cast that wider net, to bring in all the free money we can to get more equipment for the town, township, and the community,” Leszek said.

He added that the fire department currently has eight members working toward their emergency medical responder certification.