My Mack fire apparatus photo album

[bulldogboy]

Re: Reedsville Fire Rescue; in March, 2014 while responding to a reported house fire, one apparatus left with a compartment door open, struck a support pillar, and brought down the front of

the fire station. The trucks were trapped under the collapsed roof but Tanker 6-1 and Rescue 6-1 are still in service according to RFR's Facebook page. A new station opened in 2016.

                                                   bulldogboy

 

[fxfymn]

Quote

one apparatus left with a compartment door open, struck a support pillar, and brought down the front of the fire station.

Ouch! We had the same thing happen at one of our stations when "upswing" cabinet doors first became popular. Fortunately it just wiped put the column and the rest of the bay stayed in place. After that we placed bright orange flags on the door's interior that hung down when the door was open so the driver could see them in the mirror. It really amazed me that one horizontal door was able to cause so much damage.

[General Ike]

Yup... same thing in Millwood, NY in the '80s.  Engine had swing up doors open when the alarm was struck and someone forgot to close them and the chauffeur didn't check his mirrors.  Center column taken out.  Station went from having split bay doors to one big one.  

[GA_Dave]

Hopefully, Reedsville's new firehouse sits a bit farther from the road than the old one.  As you may have noticed in my two pics, the trucks were barely out of the doors, but the front bumpers were at the edge of the road.  I was standing in the road to get my pics. 

 

There are many stories of mishaps such at these, some worse than others.  Having actively visited fire stations to take pics since 1981, I have encountered dozens of them and witnessed several!  As a Firefighter for over 32 years, I have also been involved in a couple and even though I was the responsible party, I was not completely at fault.  Both happened exiting the same bay at the same station, but in different trucks and one on each side of the apparatus.  There is a 1" to 3" drop, depending on the time of year, from the station floor to the outside ramp.  In both cases, several years apart, the drop was closer to the 3" mark.  If the rig was not backed in squarely with the building, you drop one front tire before the other, causing the body to shift and occasionally, a lift-up door to unlatch.  Both times, the lift-up door was about halfway up when it hit the overhead door track.  Both times, the door removed itself from the side of the rig and landed on the floor.  Damage to the building was minimal.  Repairs took less time than all the paperwork!

[GA_Dave]

Engine 4, Nashua, NH (Department antique)

1947 Mack 95LS

1000/200

#95LS-1078

[GA_Dave]

Engine 94-1, Penn Boro, PA (retired)

1977 Mack MB/Hamerly

1000/500

[General Ike]

1 hour ago, GA_Dave said:

Hopefully, Reedsville's new firehouse sits a bit farther from the road than the old one.  As you may have noticed in my two pics, the trucks were barely out of the doors, but the front bumpers were at the edge of the road.  I was standing in the road to get my pics. 

 

There are many stories of mishaps such at these, some worse than others.  Having actively visited fire stations to take pics since 1981, I have encountered dozens of them and witnessed several!  As a Firefighter for over 32 years, I have also been involved in a couple and even though I was the responsible party, I was not completely at fault.  Both happened exiting the same bay at the same station, but in different trucks and one on each side of the apparatus.  There is a 1" to 3" drop, depending on the time of year, from the station floor to the outside ramp.  In both cases, several years apart, the drop was closer to the 3" mark.  If the rig was not backed in squarely with the building, you drop one front tire before the other, causing the body to shift and occasionally, a lift-up door to unlatch.  Both times, the lift-up door was about halfway up when it hit the overhead door track.  Both times, the door removed itself from the side of the rig and landed on the floor.  Damage to the building was minimal.  Repairs took less time than all the paperwork!

I had something happen to me once.... I was in College and just home for a short break when I was doing driver training to qualify on our TeleSquirt the following day.  I was backing into the bay (the same one I mentioned above that was accidentally converted from double to single door before my time) and the overhead door got stuck above the top view of the side mirrors of the rig.  I had no idea it was +/- 12 inches from the top when the turntable of the Squirt hit it.  Broke the coil springs and the door couldn't stay up.  A pair of extension ladders were used to prop it so we could get the rig back out and it was fixed the next day.

[bulldogboy]

There is no doubt that if you stay in the fire service long enough you will wrinkle some sheet metal (or worse). I think that just about every fire department has a similar story. Years ago, after a major fire in my city we

found some tools that belonged to a neighboring call department. I arranged to meet one of the members at his station and when I arrived one of the engines was parked on the apron and workers were fixing

the overhead door. I remarked about work being done on the door and the firefighter said, "Take a look at the engine", so I walked around and, sure enough, there was the missing compartment door. Also, how

many times did someone back into the pillars between the doors. Needed a G.O. to get a backup man in place.

                                                 bulldogboy

[bulldogboy]

5 hours ago, GA_Dave said:

Engine 4, Nashua, NH (Department antique)

1947 Mack 95LS

1000/200

#95LS-1078

Still the department antique but there are few current firefighters who can drive it so it just sits at headquarters. Once in a while a retired firefighter who had operated it is allowed to take it to parades and

funerals. I'm hoping that it sticks around but as time goes by, who knows what will happen to it. Fantastic old truck that put in a lot of hard working years.

                                                                   bulldogboy

[GA_Dave]

Antique Engine, Friendship Veterans Association, Houston, TX (collector owned)

1942 Mack Type 45E

500/150

 

x-US Army

[GA_Dave]

Engine 19-1, Yukon, PA

1989 Mack MR/Grumman

1500/2000

[fxfymn]

Quote

and the chauffeur didn't check his mirrors.

Most of the time you cannot really see that it is open in a mirror, that's why we went to the orange flags.

I think every station in the universe has had a bay door wiped out at one time or another. We tried sensors, lights, sirens, you name it and we still took doors out. At least in the days of back step riders they could push the signal buzzer to let the driver know he/she should stop.

We once had a Sutphen mid-mount tower turn too sharply coming out of quarters and the bucket tore the front of the station off. That was creative!

[GA_Dave]

Engine 1, Bellaire, TX (retired/collector owned)

1948 Mack Type 45E

500/200

#45A-1019

Edited February 20, 2017 by GA_Dave

[GA_Dave]

Engine 1, New Hope FD, Wake County, NC (retired)

1989 Mack CF/E.E.I.

1500/1200

#CF688FC-1330/#8574

[GA_Dave]

Truck 2, Green Tree, PA (retired/collector owned)

1950 Mack 85LS

750/150 Quad

[GA_Dave]

Engine 123, Six Forks, NC (retired)

1985 Mack CF/E.E.I.

1500/1000

#CF686FC-1604/#8432

[GA_Dave]

Engine 3, Zelienople, PA (retired/collector owned)

1966 Mack C-95

1000/300

 

[GA_Dave]

Tanker 806, Hickory Valley, TN

19?? Mack Superliner

0/4000

[GA_Dave]

Engine 282, Rosedale, MD (retired/collector owned)

1962 Mack B-85

750/500

#B-85F-1453

[GA_Dave]

"Puff", Port Everglades, FL (retired)

1986 Mack R/Quality

1500/1000/500F/3000DC

[GA_Dave]

Engine 3, Cloverport, KY (retired/collector owned)

1966 Mack C-95

1000/500

[GA_Dave]

Tanker 23, Pedro FD, Marion County, FL

1980 Mack DM/Gator Tank

250/2000

[GA_Dave]

I have very little info on this one, photographed at a parade in Baltimore many years ago.

 

Engine 343, Violetville, MD (retired)

1941 Mack/1947 VFD refurb

???/???

[GA_Dave]

Scene Support 8, Cherokee County, GA

2004 Mack MR/Amtech

 

[j hancock]

21 minutes ago, GA_Dave said:

I have very little info on this one, photographed at a parade in Baltimore many years ago.

 

Engine 343, Violetville, MD (retired)

1941 Mack/1947 VFD refurb

???/???

It is an A model Mack that was built between 1950-1954 depending on specs.