A USEFUL TENDER FOR FIRE BRIGADES.
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A Recent Dennis Product Which Can Haul a Trailer Pump and Give Support to the Chief Fire-fighting Appliances.
Tao municipal authority which is con cerned with the administration of a large area can be considered wholly up to date, so far as its vital services are concerned, if its fire-fighting force be not completely motorized. The most prominent authorities one and all acknowledge the great advantages that motor appliances offer, and freely:admit that fire risks and damage through tire would be materially greater if smelt equipment were not employed. This applies with much force in industrial areas and in growing cities and towns, but it is not only the authorities in such centres who appreciate the importance of modern fire-fighting plant, for those who exercise control over scattered districts and old-world towns and villages are, for the most part, fully aware of the responsibilities which they shoulder in this directions Take the case of the thriving Surrey centre of Guildford, which is frequently described by inhabitants and sightseers —especially those amongst the former who eater for seasonal visitors—as being an " old-world " town. It may be so when one considers its historical traditions and interesting links with the past, but nevertheless it possesses a municipal body which knows the worth of mechanical vehicles and appliances for enabling local services to be efficiently and economically carried out. The equipment of this authority's fire brigade will bear testimony to this statement. Not only does the brigade possess a pair of 60 h.n. Dennis fire-engines, but it has recently taken delivery of a third machine of the same make, which is for use as a general-purpose tender to the pumps.
The basis of Guildford's latest pur chase is the new 30-cwt. chas sis . of Dennis Brothers, Ltd., the salient features of its specification being a four-cylinder monobloc engine having a bore of 85 mm. and a stroke of 120 mm., which develops up to 36 h.p., a. four-speed gearbox, a propeller shaft enclosed in a spherically headed torque tube, and a worm-driven rear axle. The chassis weighs about 29 cwt., and its wheels are equipped with 33-in. by 5-in, pneumatic tyres, a spare being carried in a bracket immediately behind the driver's cab.
The cab has been specially built for the machine, and is roomy and comfortable. There is sufficient space for an officer to be carried alongside the driver, and large look-out windows are provided at the sides and the rear. Advantage is taken of all possible storage room, and the space below the driver's seat is divided into two lockers ; the fuel tank is carried on the dashboard.
The open-sided body is arranged to carry ten men, the tops of lockers, which
run the full length of the sides, forming seats for them. Each locker is divided into three sections, each compartment having its own lid. Sufficient space is left between the lockers to enable a standard type of stretcher to be carried, so that, in emergency, the vehicle can be used for quickly transporting an injured person to hospital.
Arrangements are made for carrying a 30-ft. telescopic ladder, and this is supported at its front end in a saddle affixed to the roof of the cab and at the rear on a structure which can easily be removed from its sockets, thus leaving the whole of the back unimpeded. If it be found desirable to supplement the equipment of the fire-engines, two 10-ft. lengths of 5-in, suction hose can be carried, and in this way the danger through inability to reach the water supply—which may be somewhat inaccessible if a country fire is being dealt with—is reduced.
A drawbar is fitted, so that a 200-250gallon trailer fire pump can be towed. With the full complement of equipment and personnel and the trailer attached the tender can attain speeds of 25 m.p.h., or, without the trailer, 30 m.p.h.
A 6-volt dynamo lighting set, including two headlamps, two side lamps, and a tail light, is part of the standard equipment of the chassis, but provision is made for special searchlights which may be required to be used at the scene of some fires. On a fire-engine chassis the pump drive is taken from the gearbox ; on the tender for the Guildford authorities this drive is adapted to deliver power to a special C.A.V. D.A.type dynamo. This is of the self-regulating pattern, so that, although an output of 18 amps. at 12-14 volts is obtained at a speed of 700 r.p.rn., the voltage does not increase if the speed be raised to 1,500 r.p.m. There is, therefore, no fear of bulbs being burnt out.
The searchlights are the product of Allen-Liversidge, Ltd., and they give 90-100 reflected candle power. Careful consideration of the factors involved in
fire fighting has enabled this well-known company to manufacture equipment that is strong, durable and easily handled, as well as being adjustable for both beam and floodlight. If it should be found that the cable from the dynamo is not sufficiently long to reach the position from which it is desired to use the lighting equipment, the lamps can be quickly adapted for use with dissolved acetylene a cylinder of which is located below the lamp.
After the vehicle has been in attendance at a fire, the wet hose can be Piled on to the hinged tailboard, which, when lowered, is at a lower level than the floor, and in this way the water drains away and the interior of the body can be kept quite clean. The machine we have briefly described should certainly prove a valuable addition to the fire-fighting equipment of the Guildford brigade and should be able to demonstrate its ability to give useful support to the fire pumps which it owns.