UK Home Office "Heavy Unit", a pump appliance developed for wartime service in WWII.
These were built on Bedford, Austin or Fordson 3 ton truck chassis, with a canopy crew cab accessed from the rear. The pump, rated at 700 IGPM at 100 PSI (3185 LPM @ 6.8 AT) was powered by its own engine, and the truck did not carry any water.
Equipment was pretty much limited to a ladder and hoses; these were intended for exterior structural firefighting on a large scale. They were joined by 2 ton towing tenders on Austin or Fordson chassis, which normally pulled a 5000 IGPM trailer pump, a limited number of extra-heavy 1150 GPM pumps and an assortment of turntable ladders, escape ladder carriers (including pump escapes), water carriers and a variety of specials, massively reinforcing the prewar fire services resources.
All were painted in a utilitarian grey color, as shown ere, rather than the traditional red.
These were built on Bedford, Austin or Fordson 3 ton truck chassis, with a canopy crew cab accessed from the rear. The pump, rated at 700 IGPM at 100 PSI (3185 LPM @ 6.8 AT) was powered by its own engine, and the truck did not carry any water.
Equipment was pretty much limited to a ladder and hoses; these were intended for exterior structural firefighting on a large scale. They were joined by 2 ton towing tenders on Austin or Fordson chassis, which normally pulled a 5000 IGPM trailer pump, a limited number of extra-heavy 1150 GPM pumps and an assortment of turntable ladders, escape ladder carriers (including pump escapes), water carriers and a variety of specials, massively reinforcing the prewar fire services resources.
All were painted in a utilitarian grey color, as shown ere, rather than the traditional red.
Added by Rob Johnson on 23 October 2018.