LONDON'S FIRE BRIGAD1 ND ITS ORGANIZATION.
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Dealing with Over 5,000 Outbreaks a Year. Utilized and Notes Upon the W us of the Many Motor Appliances which are Jndertaken by Various Types.
THEFtE is no more stirring call to the heart of the average citizen of London than that of "Fire! " and few sights more inspiring than the escapes, pumps and other fire-fighting appliances rushing past on their errand of saving life and property,
Inhabitants of London are justly proud of their Fire Brigade and its equipment. Its officers and men constitute the finest body of this kind and they are backed by British-built appliances second to none in the world ; which is just as well, for the fire risks in some quarters of the Metropolis are considerable, there being many areas of extreme congestion, a number of these including buildings of a value which it is almost impossible to estimate.
Few people, however, have any conception of the strength of the London Fire Brigade and the number of appliances necessary to ensure its efficiency. The authorized fire staff is 1,924, whilst administrative, technical, clerical and workshops staffs add another 179. The number of fire-stations is 62, in addition to which there are 3 river stations. Motor-propelled pumps amount to 87, motor escape vans to 75 and motor turntable ladders to 9. Special vehicles include 2 emergency tenders, a foam tender, a foam generator, a canteen van, 7 lorries, 3 tenders, and 18 motorcars. _ The street fire alarms total 1,662 and there are '30,680 hydrants, whilst the hose required for this huge fleet has a length of 62 miles.
It may be asked : Does the work involved justify all this equipment? The answer is easily found in considering the large number of fires, which, during the year 1927, was 5,125, an average of slightly over 14 per day within the County of London, whilst the total number of calls for the same period was 7,696.
As regards the organization of the Brigade, It is under a chief officer, Mr. A. R. Dyer, K.M., A.M.I.C.E., who resides at the headquarters in Southwark Bridge Road, S.E.1. For fire-fighting purposes London is divided into north and south sides of the river, these being controlled by divisional officers and assistant divisional officers north and south. They are further subdivided into districts A, B and C (north), D and E (south) and F (central), each in charge of a superintendent, with a district officer as his deputy. Each station is the common centre of a number of fire alarms which ring into it, and immediately a call is received the necessary appliances are turned out, these being a minimm of one escape and two pumps. In some congested areas, as in the City, the maximum first attendance is six appliances.
Immediately an alarm is received, the superintendent is notified ; in addition, every call received in a district is transferred to the divisional officer for the area concerned and to headquarters. Shoulda fire prove obstinate or be of a particularly dangerous nature, further appliances Gre turned out as and when required. It is, of course, necessary to distinguish between the im
portance of such fires, and calls are divided into "home." "district," and "brigade." " Home " calls are those which can be dealt with by the original attendance of machines ; "district," those which can be managed with the addition of, say, eight more pumps, giving a total af not less than 10 pumps; whilst a " brigade " call involves the attendance of a minimum of 20 pumps. No charge is made for any fire call in the London area other than for chimney fires. In the latter case, where the building Is let out in tenements and the landlord does not reside on the premises, or where the building is let out in flats, the occupiers are liable to a penalty decided by the London County Council and based upon the rateable value, the scale of payment ranging between 2s. 6d. and 20s. For chimney and small, unimportant fires a pump only is turned out.
Communication between fire alarms and stations can be maintained by telephone, as there is a telephone in eacit alarm, and to enable this to be used each appliance carries a combined key and microphone. To avoid loss of time and misunderstandings, messages in connection with fires are standardized.
The whole brigade now works on a two-shift system, th?. shifts being from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and 6 p.m. to 9 a.m., with a change-over every week-end.
The recruits are taken chiefly from the Navy, Army and Mercantile Marine.
We have already referred to the districts into which the county of London is divided, and it may also be interesting to give the number of stations for each. A has 12, the chief one being at Manchester Square in the West End; B, 8, with Clerkenwoll as the main station ; C, 12, the chief station being at Whitechapel; and D, 16, with New Cross as its centre. Clapham is the headquarters of the E district, with 9 stations, the smallest being F with 6 and Whitefriars as the chief station. For administrative purposes the three river stations are included in the F district, likewise the river-float repair depot at Charing Cross.
Analysing the fleet of appliances, there are 57 Dennis pumps and 30 of Leyland make, whilst escape vans number 58 and 17 of these makes.
Six of the turntable ladders are mounted on Tilling-Stevens chassis, and MorrisDennis built the other three. The number of escapes is 114, and these are interchangeable for use with any escape van. Amongst the lorries are two Leyland 4-tonners. equipped as breakdown vehicles. Each has a 2i-ton crane and one is complete with a 7i-ton tripod, lifting gear, horse tackle, hydraulic jack and purchases of various types. The other lorries are two Dennis 4tonners, two Tilling-Stevens of similar capacity, and a Bean 30-cwt. as a general utility vehicle to carry petrol, hose, lights, etc., and for communication between stations and the repair shops. The tenders comprise one Leyland and two Dennis. These are used chiefly for instructional purposes, as the Brigade trains all its own drivers, giving them a comprehensive course both in theory and practice.
The emergency tenders are utilized for many purposes, carrying Proto smoke helmets with breathing apparatus, an electric generator for the portable searchlights, oxygen reviving apparatus, tools for lift accidents and those due to crane collapses, electric and acetylene cutting plant etc., and pr dealing with people overcome by fumes in sewers etc. For convenience, the oxy-acetylene plant Is carried in what is termed a perambulator, which should not be confused with the more familiar conveyance.
A particularly useful type of appliance for coping with oil and petrol fires is the Fire Foam tender, also on a Tilling-Stevens chassis. In this an electric motor, receiving its current from the petrol-electric system of the chassis, drives two foam pumps for A and B solutions.
A vehicle which is much appreciated by firemen who have had long hours and exhausting work at important fires is the canteen van, which is mounted on an old Commer Car chassis. This van is shown in one of our illustrations and it will be seen that it is arranged in a similar manner to a coffee-stall. It is equipped with three Primus stoves, and provides coffee, cocoa, Oxo, cheese and biscuits, etc. Where fires require excessively long periods of work, relief men are provided.
The headquarters include a fully equipped station, administrative offices, engineering workshops, hose and store rooms, and a training centre for recruits.
The mechanical engineer is responsible to the chief officer for the maintenance of the whole of the Brigade's appliances and gear, also for the vehicles of the London Ambulance Service. All the motor appliances are overhauled and repaired at the headquarters and there is a regular system of inspection by a technical staff. Every motor pump undergoes a deep-lift test of 26 ft. once in three months; by this means the soundness of the turbine pump, vacuum pump, suction joints, etc., can be ascertained. Afterwards the appliance is placed over a pit and undergoes a detailed inspection, the results of which are reported upon an analysis sheet.
A system of routine inspection is also laid down for the drivers, each of whom is provided with a sheet 034 of instructions as to the care of the appliances, but further inspection is necessary to bring technical ability to bear on the finding of elusive faults.
All appliances other than pumps are brought in for workshop inspection once every six months.
One of the jobs which have to be undertaken is the recutting of non-skid grooves in the solid tyres. These grooves are originally moulded into the treads, and, after wear, are deepened by a milling cutter driven by a • motor, the wheel being mounted in a large lathe. Included in the equipment of the shop is a vacuum pump for testing gauges against standard instruments. During overhauls the appliances are completely stripped, and such parts as steering arms and springs are passed through the fire ; as the qualities of steel are known, the proper hardening treatment can be carried out.
The workshops staff is employed under ordinary commercial conditions and is not part of the Uniformed staff of the Brigade.
Many people have, no doubt, wondered how it is possible to start the motors with the rapidity which is so necessary. To begin with, every engine is equipped with both coil and magneto ignition, both being used simultaneously. In addition, every, engine is kept to a minimum temperature of approximately 60 degrees by starting up periodically. Most of the engines start at the first turn, or will start on the switch alone. It may be of interest to know that the average time for turning out an escape during the year 1927 was 20 secs.
In all, about 140 Dennis fireengines have been built for the London County Council, and it is interesting to note that it was a single-deck, pneumatictyred bus of the same make that Scotland Yard first sanctioned for general service in the Metropolis.
We were recently present at the Motor Escape Competition Final for 1928 held at the headquarters. Six teams took part, these being from Manchester Square, Camden Town, Stoke Newington, Deptford, Vauxhall and Waterloo Road. -For the test a call is supposed to be received to a six-storey building. Two people (represented by dummies) are presumed to be calling for assistance from the fifth-floor window and two are on the third floor. The escape had to be pitched to the third floor, and Islos. 3 and 4 of the crew, carrying a long line and a lowering line, mount the escape, enter the third-floor window and ascend to the fifth .loor. Meanwhile, Nos. 1 and 2 get a hydrant to work, then ascend the escape to the third floor and carry down two dummies. So soon as Nos. 1 and 2 are clear, Nos. 3 and 4 lower the dummies.
The time counts from the crossing of the starting line until the last dummy touches the ground. The results were as
follow : M a nchester Square, 1 min. 37 secs.; Vauxhall, 1 min. 42/ secs.; Camden Town, 1 min. 51k secs. ; Waterloo Road, 2 'mins. 01 sees.; Stoke
-Newington, 2 wins. 12/ secs. ; Deptford, 2 mins. 141 secs.