MABAS Division 54 is in southern Illinois, covering all or portions of Effingham, Jasper, Fayette, Shelby, Cumberland and Richland Counties situated less than 100 miles east of St. The Division area is predominately rural with developing urban areas experiencing commercial and industrial growth. Interstate 57 and Interstate 70 run through the entire service area along with several rail systems including AMTRAK. These departments are committed to providing quality service to citizens over a combined area of 1,806 square miles. In addition, dedicated personnel from these agencies have joined forces to provide the region with the specialized services of the MABAS 54 Haz Mat Team. Our Division is 1 of the 67 Divisions in the State. MABAS-IL includes approximately 35,000 of Illinois' 40,000 firefighters (volunteer, paid-on-call, part-time, full-time) who staff emergency response units including more than 1,500 fire stations, 2,495 engine companies, 469 ladder trucks, 1,100 ambulances (mostly paramedic capable), 297 heavy rescue squads, and 788 water tenders. Fire/EMS reserve (back-up) units account for more than 1,000 additional emergency vehicles. There are 42 Hazardous Materials Teams, 26 Underwater Rescue/Recovery Teams, 41 Technical Rescue Teams across the state and a state sponsored urban search and rescue team
