GA_Dave

1 hour ago, 67RModel said:

Did your employment take you to all these fire houses as a vendor rep or trainer or something or did you just as a hobby visit fire stations and take pictures. Hard to believe a guy from Georgia was randomly in the Brighton Heights Pittsburgh neighborhood in 1988 and happened to get a photo that good...Just curious

Yes and no.  Most of my career was spent as a FF/EMT in College Park, GA.  I grew up near Buffalo, NY and moved to Atlanta in 1985.  Being a FF helped me make contacts, but it was mostly done as a hobby (obsession).  The bulk of my photographs are not random shots, they are posed to obtain the best shot possible.  The trips are planned.  I have photographed apparatus all over the Greater Pittsburgh area over the years.  My most recent was back in 2023, starting at Cranberry Twp., then Peters Twp, Broughton, McKeesport, Irwin, Grapeville, and four stations in Hempfield Twp.  This was on the way from my hometown in NY back to Atlanta. 

2 hours ago, 67RModel said:

How did you come to photo so many different company's trucks all over the country? Do recall which year you took the photo of engine 35 in Pittsburgh? I had to google it to see which area of Pittsburgh that station is located. I was curious since its local to me. Its in the Brighton Heights neighborhood on Pittsburgh's North Side. Not a bad area but not too great either. Was probably a lot nicer when the photo of the Brockway was taken. Attached is a Google street view of the station as it is now. Hasn't really changed much at all. What's interesting is you can see in the carved stone marker above the overhead door it says Engine House No. 15. The county real estate records say the city acquired the property in 1898. The building looks to me like it was built in the teens or 1920s.

It's all my wife's fault!  I have been fascinated with fire apparatus since I was three, when I watched all the action at a nearby fire from my front porch.  From there, my interest in them grew. As a teenager, I would ride my bike to stations as far as 15 miles away, just to check out their apparatus.  When I started driving, my range increased.  I received a camera for Christmas in 1980.  I had no real interest in photography, so it just sat on a shelf for a while.  Not long after, the local department took delivery of a new pumper.  I was heading out to go see it and my wife suggested that I take the camera and photograph it, which I did.  That was almost 21,000 apparatus ago.  The Pittsburgh Brockway was photographed in 1988.

Engine 22, Norlina, NC

1964 Brockway/Seagrave

750/750

#P-5175

x-Bowie, MD

Antique Engine, Abingdon, VA

1924 Brockway Torpedo/American LaFrance

350/40

#B-243

Tanker 1, Johnson City, TN

1977 Brockway Huskiteer/Saulsbury

250/1000

#1340

x-Lynchburg, VA

1 hour ago, 67RModel said:

So are you saying if you had functioning city water, a 6,700 gallon pool full of water, an engine driven trash pump full of fuel and all you could find was a functioning 3/4” garden hose you would throw your hands up and walk away?

 

Not saying that at all.  IF I was a guy who owned a home in that setting, with the possibility of that kind of fire, I would have already purchased the correct size hose and equipment to adequately do the job. 

Don't get me wrong, when TSHTF, you react with whatever you have available.  I fault no one for trying their best.  I have extinguished more than one car fire with the only thing I had available - I beat them out with the flannel shirt I was wearing.  But when you know you are in a situation that has a known potential for this type of incident, being prepared is the key to success.

Over the past 44 years, I have photographed only 9 fire apparatus built on Brockway chassis.  It was not a common chassis compared to the Fords, GM's and Internationals that are everywhere.  I saw no previous examples in this section, so I thought I would add those I have photographed.  Also, I am not well versed in any model names or numbers used by Brockway, so please chime in if you know.

Engine 35, Pittsburgh, PA

1978 Brockway/Maxim

1500/500

1 hour ago, 67RModel said:

That video shows the man having a pool in his backyard. I don’t know it looked like maybe 2 or 3,000 gallons possibly. I would think a ton of those homes that burned up have similar or larger pools. It’s easy to say this in hindsight but I would think it would be handy to have a small engine driven trash pump rigged up to accept a garden hose as a fire contingency plan. Much like people in cold climates have a wood stove or generator for backup power. 

There is more water in that pool than you think.  It has to be at least 10' x 30', based on the size on the chair on the far side.  There are about 7.5 gallons of water in a cubic foot and I'll bet the pool is at least 3 feet deep and that's 6700 gallons right there.  Your idea has merit, but you'd need a larger diameter than a garden hose.

Some other clown started spreading that the half of the LAFD apparatus are electric and need to return to the station to recharge every 11 hours.  The FACT is, LAFD operates ONE electric pumper.  While I think the concept is utterly ridiculous (water and electricity mix so well), electric fire apparatus are equipped with an on-board back-up generator that can recharge the apparatus anywhere.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

I have several family ties to WWII, although none to Pearl Harbor itself.  My Dad was too young to enlist at the beginning, but later served with the 1st Infantry Division in Europe.  His older brother served on a crew manning a 16-inch gun on the USS New Jersey.  Dad's older sister was married to a guy who drove a deuce-and-a-half all over Europe.  Mom lost her older brother, a belly gunner on a B-24 that went down in Italy.  Her sister married a guy who stormed the beaches at Normandy.

I was raised to honor them and the thousands upon thousands that served with them.  It is a longstanding tradition that I always watch the movie "Tora! Tora! Tora!" every year on December 7th.