Due to a recent retirement of a Kankakee Fire Department captain, there has been some shift within the ranks.

At Monday’s Kankakee City Council meeting, six-year Lt. Ken Baier was introduced as the new captain on the force as he replaced the post vacated by the early May retirement of Captain Dave Wiechen.

Baier, of Watseka, who was promoted on May 3, also has served for the past five years as the Watseka Fire Department chief, and is one of five captains on the Kankakee force.

Baier, a 2001 graduate of Clifton Central High School, has been a member of the Kankakee department since 2009.

To fill the lieutenant position left open by Baier’s promotion, Firefighter Nate Boyce was elevated to the rank of lieutenant. He is one of 10 lieutenants within the current 47-member department.

Boyce, of Bourbonnais, is a 1997 graduate of Cissna Park High School and has been a member of the city fire department since 2003.

Finally, Chief Bryan LaRoche introduced the newest addition to the department, Ethan Belski, a 2020 graduate of LaSalle-Peru Township High School.

Belski, 24, of LaSalle, whose first day within the department was April 27, has been a part-time member of the LaSalle Fire Department.

The Kankakee Fire position is the first full-time position within a fire department for Belski. Belski is seeking to move closer to Kankakee.

LaRoche is budgeted to have 51 firefighters.

Baier, 43, also a licensed funeral home director, is completing his bachelor’s degree in public safety administration from Southern Illinois University. He anticipates graduating after the fall 2026 semester.

He also previously served on the Bourbonnais Township Fire Protection District and the Ashkum Fire Department.

As a captain, he will oversee a shift crew of 14 officers. In Watseka, he oversees a paid-on-call and part-time department of 32 members.

“I’m excited,” he said of his promotion. “This is where a can pass on new ideas, form a team and help move the department along.”

Baier’s father, Roy, was a 20-year member of the Watseka Fire Department and was the source for Baier’s interest in the profession.

Boyce labeled his May 3 promotion as “rejuvenating.”

“This is a great opportunity to lead the men and women. I’m looking forward to this,” he said.