Last Day For FDL FD Division Chief Tom Wendt

It’s a bittersweet day for Tom Wendt today. The Division Chief of Fire Prevention for the Fond du Lac Fire Department puts in his last day and will be retiring after 35 years with the department. Wendt says he has a lot of memories from over those years including one of the first big fires he fought in 1978 in the attic of the Retlaw Hotel.  He says they did a good job because the hotel is still standing today. He says back in the day fires weren’t they only health hazards firefighters encountered on the job. He says there was also the abundance of fried food and cigarette smoking.  Wendt says a lot of firefighters back then also had second jobs because the pay wasn’t what it was today.Troy Haase takes over as Division Chief of Fire Prevention on Monday.