Most people take fire protection for granted. In fact, most residents can live in a community for decades and never need to call 911 for a medical emergency or fire. But if you are ever in an emergency situation, you want to feel confident that, when you do make that call, help will be on the way.

Giving the citizens of East Peoria that confidence is what East Peoria Fire Chief Bobby Zimmerman and his team of firefighters try to do every day. Whether it is educating kids about fire safety, inspecting business to assure they are operating safely, or responding to a fire in the middle of a February night, he wants people to know that the fire department is there for them.

“We’re here for the community 365 days a year,” Zimmerman said. “We have the community’s back.” He said the day when the fire department or an EMS ambulance shows up at a person’s home is often the worse day of their life.

“If we can help someone when they are having the worse day of their life and have a positive outcome, it’s just amazing,” Zimmerman said.

The fire chief has been working on building and sustaining confidence since assuming the administration of the East Peoria Fire Department in May 2022. He has witnessed a great deal of change in his 20+ year firefighting career. As East Peoria has continued to grow and change, the department has changed right along with it.

Recent evidence of that evolution is the new fire station that opened at 2001 Centennial Drive in February 2024. Zimmerman said the $3.5 million facility was nearly 30 years in the making as the City of East Peoria and state representatives worked with Illinois Central College to secure property and funds. In part, the new station was in response to growth in the area around ICC and its impact on response times.

Zimmerman said, “In this line of work, time is everything. Minutes matter.”

With the opening of the new station, he said the department can provide advanced life support engine response to every resident in four to six minutes, besting national response standards.

“As the city has grown and the dynamics of the city have changed, you always have to be looking at where your resources are and how best to serve the community,” he said, adding that officials have had very preliminary discussions about relocating and expanding the current Central Fire Station at 201 W. Washington St. Like the East Peoria Police Department, which broke ground for a new station late last year, he said the fire department has outgrown its current home.

Talk of a new station is “in its infancy,” he said. As those plans continue taking shape, the department is focused on making sure the entire team has the necessary training to provide the best possible service.

Responding to people in crisis has been Zimmerman’s calling since 2000, when he served as a volunteer for the Germantown Fire Department. He joined the East Peoria Fire Department in 2004, serving as a fire lieutenant and deputy fire chief before assuming overall responsibility for day-to-day operations.

The fire department is currently fully staffed with 49 sworn officers. With the addition of the new station near ICC, there are four stations spread across the city. Every East Peoria firefighter is also a paramedic, which makes the East Peoria Fire Department one of only a few south of Interstate 80 to provide 100% fire-based paramedic service.

Zimmerman said his career was sparked by his father’s service as the volunteer fire chief in Germantown. He said that the minimum age to be a firefighter in Illinois is 21, so he encourages young people interested in a firefighting career to begin paramedic training right out of high school. Upon completion of that training a paramedic can be hired by the department and sent to a 12-week fire academy training course. A candidate can become a full-fledged firefighter once the academy work is successfully completed. 

“(Firefighting) is really about taking care of your community,” Zimmerman said. “It’s an honor to serve people and to be there for them.”

Zimmerman and his wife, Sethany, a teacher in East Peoria District 86, are doing their best to keep up with two active boys ages 10 and 13. They live in East Peoria, and when he is not managing the fire department, he coaches his boys’ athletic teams and stays engaged with the community. He sees nothing but good in the schools, parks, lifestyle, businesses, and other amenities in the city.

Some call firefighters heroes, but like many others in his profession, Zimmerman disagrees with the title.

“I’m a public servant who is here for my community,” he said. “It is our responsibility and our duty to help people in times of crisis. If we can prevent a tragedy from happening, that’s our number one goal.”