ELKHORN, Wis. — For the past two weeks, our investigative series, "Understaffed and Under Fire" has exposed staffing struggles and the fire house's condition at the Elkhorn Area Fire Department.
Now, there are questions about transparency after Elkhorn city leaders threatened firefighters and paramedics with a letter to keep quiet, days after they talked with TMJ4's Chief Investigative Reporter Jenna Rae. The same day, Elkhorn's Fire Chief Trent Eichmann was placed on administrative assignment and is now being internally investigated.
In early April, Rae sat down with fire lieutenant Tristan McNamara and paramedic Jess Nicikowski.
They've been sounding the alarm on concerns they said are impacting public safety, while we try to get answers from city leaders.
UNDERSTAFFED, UNDERFUNDED AND UNDER FIRE
"If the city doesn't want to support us, then people are gonna get really tired of it, and they're gonna leave," Nicikowski said.
The call is coming from inside the firehouse.
"The people need to know what's going on," McNamara said.
It's a department that's been understaffed and underfunded.
"We've only been fully staffed like a matter of weeks, for maybe one time," Nicikowski said.
"The city's put some money into this place, trying to keep up with things, but again, it's always out of dire need," McNamara echoed.
Now, it's a department that's under fire.
"The city doesn't seem to want to listen to what we have to say. They won't come here and see us," Nicikowski said.
Watch: Fire staff receives letter to keep quiet days after speaking with TMJ4 News
A RISK TO THE PUBLIC'S SAFETY WHILE FIRST RESPONDERS WAIT FOR ANSWERS
All of this, creating the perfect recipe for what first responders say is an impending disaster.
"Is it pure luck at this point that no one has died on your watch and none of your personnel have been injured?" Rae asked.
"Yup. We've had some close calls. The engine in your background here has fire damage on the front end. We ran out of water. The fire got out of control. We're lucky no one was hurt," McNamara responded.
"Not only is it just a matter of time that something fatal will happen, but it's only a matter of time before more people walk away, and then the situation becomes much more dire," Nicikowski explained.
First responders are now showing up to public meetings to voice concerns and get answers.
"I respectfully stand before you today as a symbol of frustration felt by myself and my crewmates who work feverishly to protect the citizens served by the Elkhorn Area Fire Department," McNamara said during an Elkhorn Common Council meeting in March 2026.
It's answers taxpayers also want from City Administrator Adam Swann and Mayor Tim Shiroda.
"I am calling on all of you to uphold the promises made in the 2020 referendum," resident Elizabeth Kubiak said during the same common council meeting.
It's why McNamara and Nicikowski said they wanted to do an interview with Rae. That interview happened on April 6, 2026.
"The community just needs to know what's going on so they can become more involved," McNamara pleaded.
WHAT HAPPENED AFTER TMJ4'S INTERVIEW AND THE THREATS MADE TO FIRST RESPONDERS
Four days after our interview, Fire Chief Trent Eichmann was placed on "administrative assignment" at the direction of the city administrator and the mayor.
The same day, every member of the fire department received this four-page letter:
It's informing them about the investigation into "serious" allegations involving the chief. Without describing the allegations, the letter states that first responders are "prohibited from deleting, altering, or otherwise modifying any records pertaining to city matters," adding, "even if such source is on a personal account."
The letter says staff could be questioned as part of this investigation and that "failure to answer questions truthfully may be treated as insubordination, and the city may draw adverse inferences based on your failure to comply with this order."
The letter, which is signed by Mayor Shiroda, states "no member can engage in rumor-mongering or gossip" and that if any media outlet reaches out, staff should tell them to contact city leadership.
If staff is contacted by others in a "personal capacity" then the letter states they're required to draft and send a communication to the mayor explaining who they spoke to, what they discussed, and the direction or information they gave.
Finally, the letter states city leaders expect full cooperation, writing, "a violation of directives in this letter or otherwise issued to you will be viewed as an effort to impede or interfere with our investigation and is grounds for termination."
"It appears to be about controlling the narrative, but that isn't something I can prove. I mean, it's just what I have watched and observed that we, collectively as a fire department, have a different narrative than I think Adam would like us to have," Nicikowski explained.
TMJ4 CONTINUES TO PUSH FOR ANSWERS
Swann and Shiroda have denied our several requests for an on-camera interview, despite extending our deadline by one week, saying they're only willing to answer questions via email.
We told them we'd be at their next public meeting to try to ask questions in person.
Here's Swann's reaction:
Here's Shiroda's reaction:
"This is about what the people don't know, and if nobody's talking about it, then the community doesn't know," Nicikowski said.
We talked with Mayor Shiroda on the phone Wednesday. He said he's still not committed to doing an on-camera interview, but that he will consider it. So, we've sent that request again.
In a press release posted on Facebook by city leaders last week, they said the claims that they've been "unresponsive and unwilling to discuss the issues are "false and misleading."
To be clear, we asked both the city administrator and the mayor for an on-camera interview more than once, and both told us they were only willing to answer questions sent to them via email. Since they're both public leaders, TMJ4 News believes they have a responsibility to be as open and transparent as possible with taxpayers, and that's not something we feel can fully happen in an emailed statement.
Our requests for an on-camera interview with either of them stand.
If there's something you want our chief investigative reporter to look into, email her at Jenna.Rae@tmj4.com.
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