Four new pieces of Pierce fire apparatus have arrived or are arriving in Raleigh. 2018 Pierce Arrow XT aerial ladder, 107-foot. First pump-less ladder since 1986. Production complete, delivery soon. 2018 Pierce Arrow XT heavy rescue, walk-in body, two-person cab. First walk-in heavy rescue since 1953. Delivered August 24. Still getting tags, and equipment mounted. …
Wrapped another squirrel chase! This one started as a question: what’s the origin story of New Hanover’s county fire department? How did a system of community (or “rural”) volunteer fire departments (Castle Hayne, Myrtle Grove, North Wilmington, etc.) evolve into a career, county-run department? It’s story told in two parts. First, in 1950, with the …
Continue reading ‘New Hanover County Fire History – Research Notes’ »
Found for sale on eBay. Readers can add makes/models/years. Look like (bad) scans of physical prints. Maybe some of Tony Kelly’s postcard pics, from back in the day? Click to (slightly) enlarge:
Found for sale on eBay, scans of photographs of the Frisco (Dare) and Triangle (Davidson) fire departments. Both from the 1970s, say seller notes. The Frisco picture is a grayscale scan from the seller.
For your Sunday reading, annual reports of the Charlotte Fire Department for the calendar years 1937 and 1953. Lots of interesting information and great hand-drawn graphics. The 1953 report also includes hand-drawn pictures of each front-line apparatus! Scanned from bound copies at Wilson Library at the University of North Carolina, during a recent visit. Read …
Continue reading ‘Charlotte Fire Department Annual Reports – 1937, 1953’ »
For your holiday enjoyment, here’s another Legeros History Chart. Raleigh-Durham International Airport fire department. AKA, RDU CFR. View as JPG | View as PDF | See more charts Here’s the landing page. And only one typo spotted so far. The 1979 quick-response truck was a Chevy, not a Ford. Will be updated. Here’s the chart in paper form. Sometimes Mr. …
Continue reading ‘Visual History of Raleigh-Durham Airport Fire Department’ »
July 1, 2018 Durham Fire Department, Expanded, In Service! Cool things happened at 7:00 a.m. today. The city of Durham Fire Department activated two new stations (Page Road, Seaton Road), and a mess of new units and companies. Some are housed at temporary quarters, as Station 17 on Leesville Road is still a couple weeks …
Continue reading ‘Durham City/County Fire Merger – DFD Expanded, In Service!’ »
Raleigh received a pair of new mini-pumpers in February, a pair of 2017 Ford F-550/Knapheide/UPF/Foam Pro 250/250/10 units. Shown on left. They replaced a pair of 1986 Chevy brush trucks, which were retired. Shown on right. Along with a 2005 Ford F-550/Reading/Slagle, the city’s three mini-pumpers are assigned to and cross-staffed by Squad 7, Squad …
Continue reading ‘Dispositions of Raleigh’s Retired Mini-Pumpers’ »
Last updated 7:00 a.m., July 25 This posting is undergoing updates, with clarifications on the coming current changes, and as additional historical perspectives are added. News out of Brunswick County. Yaupon Beach Fire Department is dissolving, and transferring their assets to Southport Fire Department. Members of YBFD are also joining SFD. [ Previously reported as a …
Continue reading ‘Long Beach, Yaupon Beach, Oak Island, Southport – History Notes’ »
“Believed to be the only ambulance as such owned by a volunteer fire department in North Carolina,” noted the Duplin Times on July 14, 1955. See article below Definitely one of the earliest. What other volunteer (only) departments were operating ambulances at that time? That’s the open question to readers, to accompany these neat pictures …
Continue reading ‘Kenansville Fire Department Starts Ambulance Service, 1955’ »