Niles Police Department to Participate in 8th Annual Plane Pull

Chief Dennis McEnerney is leading the Niles Police Department at the 8th Annual Plane Pull at O'Hare International Airport this Saturday Sept. 10. The tug-of-war competition is hosted by Special Olympics Illinois and the Illinois Law Enforcement Torch Run as teams compete to pull an aircraft 12 feet as quickly as possible.

Teams compete in one of three divisions:

• Open Division (idea for companies, school teams, gyms, CrossFit’s, clubs, friends and families)
• Public Safety Division (law enforcement, fire fighters, EMTs, paramedics, DNR, DOC and military personnel; teams need at least 10 public safety competitors to qualify)
• Hotel Division (solely for groups in the hotel industry)

A team of up to 20 will tug a UPS Airbus A300 or United Airlines 737, weighing nearly 180,000 lbs or about 90 tons. Awards are given to the fastest pull in each division, fastest pull overall and top fundraising team.

Each team must raise a minimum of $1,000. So far, the Niles Police Department includes 20 participants and has raised $7,275. To donate to their cause, go to soill.donordrive.com.

Here is more from the police department:

Questions on this event? Please contact Sandy Nash at 309-888-2551 or go to www.soill.org.