Saturday, March 21, 2015

1955 Oshkosh 1000-gallon pumper of the LAFD

3 comments:

R. Reeder said...

My father was with the LA Fire Dept. from the mid fifties until the late seventies . He was station at the Mountain Patrol station on Coldwater Canyon just up from the San Fernando Valley . The Oshkosh pictures above was stationed there at that time . The first time that I remember seeing it was when my dad walked us over to this big corrugated steel barn like building and slid the big doors open ... here was this monstrous fire truck that was incredibly huge ! Scared the hell out of me ! After the initial impact of seeing it for the first time I really got into what an awesome truck it was . My dad would have his turn at driving it at different times and said it was something to be flying down Coldwater Canyon with all of those tight turns with the sirens and red lights going off ! My dad was always in great shape , worked out all the time and being 5 or six years old at the time it seemed appropriate that he would wrangle such a beast through those hills and wherever they were sent . He was involved in the Bel Aire fire and we didn't see him for 3 day's and nights . He had some stories about his time with the Fire Dept. that are something else . Those guys did one incredible job at protecting people and property. Ofcourse they lost buildings , houses and such , but they did save many structures and countless lives and sometimes at the cost of their own . I am very proud of my father and his fellow firemen for what they have done and continue to do for us across this nation everyday day of the year . Thank you ... Does anyone know the fate of the LA Fire Dept. Oshkosh ? It would be incredible to see her again ! By the way , my dad is still going at 95 ! Thank you for reading this and I apologize for my lack of writing skills

Unknown said...

Mr. Reeder,

I do historical apparatus research for the Los Angeles Fire Department Historical Society. LAFD had two of these 1955 Oshkosh W-series 4x4 trucks with bodywork by Yankee. Each was powered by a Hall Scott I-6 935 ci gas engine, carried 1000 gallons of water, and had two Byron-Jackson 150 gpm pumps. They were Department Shop numbers 748 (Tank Wagon at Station 97), and 749 (Tank Wagon at Mountain Patrol 1 (now Station 108), later moved to Station 99). I too, wish I knew what happened to them. Do you or your father remember a big tandem-axle cab-over Kenworth Tank Wagon? That one is in Mexico.

R. Reeder said...

Hello ! Sorry for getting back to you so late
..Thank you for the information about those trucks ! My Dad passed away just over a year ago so I can't answer your question in regards to the Kenworth , though I would bet that he would have remembered it . By the way , I have my father's helmet from Mountain Patrol 1 . The badge on the front says Patrol 1 . It would really be a kick to find one of the two Oshkosh tankers and possibly restore it . Awesome machine . Thank you again for the info on the tankers and for having the knowledge and knowing the history of the department as well as you do .