Typical Tokyo medium pumper, one of some 438 operated by full-time fireighters in the city.
Five crew, mid-mounted pump, two preconnected suction hoses for hydrant or rainwater sump water supply, lightweight open construction ground ladders, and a four wheeled hose cart mounted at the rear. But, like most Tokyo pumpers, there is no room for a water tank or hose reel equipment. Tokyo firefighters rely on connecting very rapidly to street water supplies, and they are indeed very quick!
All Tokyo fire appliances are painted solid red, except for rescue trucks, which have a white zig-zag "lightning flash" painted on their sides to make them instanly recognizable at an incident.
These compact pumpers respond in large numbers to surround and isolate the fire structure. Off the main thoroughfares, almost all structures are wooden - and packed very closely together, so that a minor incident can easiy become a conflagration involving numerous adjacent structures.
So the Tokyo FRS tend to anticipate the worst case scenario, and first response is usually many times greater than you would see in any European city. Local community volunteer fire companies also frequently respond in force alogside the full-time personnel.
Five crew, mid-mounted pump, two preconnected suction hoses for hydrant or rainwater sump water supply, lightweight open construction ground ladders, and a four wheeled hose cart mounted at the rear. But, like most Tokyo pumpers, there is no room for a water tank or hose reel equipment. Tokyo firefighters rely on connecting very rapidly to street water supplies, and they are indeed very quick!
All Tokyo fire appliances are painted solid red, except for rescue trucks, which have a white zig-zag "lightning flash" painted on their sides to make them instanly recognizable at an incident.
These compact pumpers respond in large numbers to surround and isolate the fire structure. Off the main thoroughfares, almost all structures are wooden - and packed very closely together, so that a minor incident can easiy become a conflagration involving numerous adjacent structures.
So the Tokyo FRS tend to anticipate the worst case scenario, and first response is usually many times greater than you would see in any European city. Local community volunteer fire companies also frequently respond in force alogside the full-time personnel.
Added by Rob Johnson on 10 August 2014.