Fire Engines Photos

Bob, would love to see your third picture of the Leyland/Metz TL.
Also whats the registration number of the pump escape please?.

Added by Pete Matten on 04 November 2008.

Bob Graham, I'm interested, yes please, , , ,

Added by Pavel on 04 November 2008.

must be one of the very few 'open' machines to have a blue light fitted!

Added by Barrie Green on 05 November 2008.

Yes, the sad photos of this rig, junked, in Winkleigh, Devon, UK are at picture 10580 and picture 10579 ; if you can bear to go there.

There is another set of a junked sister rig, Anglesey, North Wales, UK at
Pictures # 2122 to # 2125 inclusive.

After these shots; I don't think we can ever get enough photos of the machines when in their prime; and, of their sisters fortunate enough to be preserved and lovingly restored.

So, Bob, please bring on the 3rd one for us.....

Regards, from Canada,
Pat_R-B

Added by Pat Rivers-Bowerman on 06 November 2008.

Bob has added, at picture 12182, the 3rd 1938 Leyland from Hastings; and it is a little honey - 1938 Leyland Pumper BDY 507, with fully-enclosed body. Beautiful coach-work - ya gotta see it !

Regards, from Canada,
Pat_R-B

Added by Pat Rivers-Bowerman on 06 November 2008.

It's me again:

Bob Graham has posted his 4 pictures of this remarkable 1938 Leyland Fire-Truck trio at Hastings, UK., viz:

1938 Leyland Pump - Limousine - BDY 509 picture 12182
1938 Leyland Pump Escape - Art Deco body picture 12220 and picture 12163
(HERE, in back-ground, at the station)
1938 Leyland Metz TTL [Aerial] picture 12124 and picture 12163 (HERE)

Correction to above Post - it is ALL 3 trucks, that ya gotta see....

Pat_R-B


Added by Pat Rivers-Bowerman on 09 November 2008.

Is this the old station on Bohemia Road per chance Bob?

Added by Andrew Middleton on 15 August 2011.

This station is was in seaside road which is just off Bexhill road St Leonards.It has since been pulled down but the station yard is still there.Bohemia road station replaced this in 1971 the other station at the time was Halton just off the west hill in Hastings.This station was closed in 1977 and a new station opened on the Ridge.

Added by Shaun R. on 19 August 2011.

Thanks Shaun. Why has Bohemia road been depleted of appliances over the years?

Added by Andrew Middleton on 20 August 2011.

Bohemia road looks like it has been deleted of appliance because its a barn of a building with the 5 bays, but in truth it has only lost an old green godess that was painted red in the borough day that was only used in dire emergancies. The rescue tender that used to be stationed there was removed in 1993 when the rescue pump concept was put in place. Now all ESFRS stations have a rescue pump.

Added by Shaun R. on 21 August 2011.

I must have been one of the last to have photographed the GMC there and at Eastbourne in 1992.

Added by Andrew Middleton on 22 August 2011.

This is unbelievable such a surprise to me. My father Charlie Smith was the engineer that looks after these fire-engines. He built, nurtured and modified them right up to 1966 when he retired. As son as he retired they scrapped them becuase there was no-one to maintain them. As you may have seen the post I put up earlier with regards to him building the roof (apparently being the first covered engine) after the designer turned up with his plans. The Metz Turntable bent the ladder when it hit a building in a storm. I have a photo of my dad hanging off the top of it on a harness in Cambridge Road making safe a chimney. Haha you get get the Fire Brigade to do that these days.Anyway Metz wanted a five figure sum to straighten the ladder which also would render the engine out of service so my Dad designed and built a jacking jig to straighten it which cost the brigade nothing only his wages. If you look on the nearside rear roof of the Leyland you can see a quick release ladder rack mechanism which he also designed and built so you could get the ladder off in seconds. I remember my Dad taking me up the escapement when I was about 6 and we went right up to fully extended. I was terrified as it was saying in the wind. It was fantastic when he drove me through Hastings on the Metz with the bells ringing. These pictures have brought me some fantastic memories. We lived opposite Priory Road Fire station in a fire house. So he had to commute daily in his Austin Ruby to the Marina Workshops as they were called. He also worked for Napier in Acton working on the Napier Lion engines that were fitted in the Schneider Trophy Winning S5 1927. I believe he was there from the age of 16. He joined the fire brigade in 1939 as an engineer and was sent to New Haven and then on to the blitz. He applied for the RAF to become a pilot but the Fire Brigade wouldn't let him go as they had very few engineers. It was probably just as dangerous to be in the Blitz but I have to say there was probably less chance of surviving as a fighter pilot. I have so many funny stories he told me like when they came back for a break from the Blitz in and old Leyland coach and they went down Polhill with no brakes. Half way down there was a massive bang and all the insides of the gearbox emptied out down the hill. He said the speedo never did work after that :)

Added by Greg Smith on 27 March 2019.

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