After a long week of business meetings, I was ready to head home and faced about a 7 hour drive. Well, it looks like my arrival time back home was going to be a bit delayed.
This is why I really enjoy FD's in the southwest part of Virginia and why I love this hobby. While traveling some unknown back roads attempting to get to either Interstate 81 or Interstate 77, I came across the Russell Prater Volunteer FD in Buchan County. This station is interesting......it is in a mountainous area which provides some real challenges for the FD. Trust me....it provided me some real challenges getting level photographs. I ended up having to stand in the back of a pick up truck to get some level photographs. If one of the members at the station not had that pick up truck, you would have seen more photographs of the underneath of trucks.
On a personal note - this FD really impressed me. These guys have no money, have an assortment of hand me down fire trucks, and basically have used band aides to keep them running. Each truck is "adopted" by a member and their job is to keep it going. They are in desperate need of some new used trucks and are hoping that a FD will be able to donate a truck to them. I am currently working on trying to find them a used truck, along with another fellow member of firepics. If your station happens to have an engine or engine - tanker that is willing to donate, please contact me at mnsand@comcast.net.
Unit 151 is a 1977 Mack CF600 with a 1000/500. It has serial number 1877. The Mack previously ran from Norton, Virginia (I have posted Norton's current apparatus elsewhere in this thread).
Mike Sanders
Ashburn, VA
This is why I really enjoy FD's in the southwest part of Virginia and why I love this hobby. While traveling some unknown back roads attempting to get to either Interstate 81 or Interstate 77, I came across the Russell Prater Volunteer FD in Buchan County. This station is interesting......it is in a mountainous area which provides some real challenges for the FD. Trust me....it provided me some real challenges getting level photographs. I ended up having to stand in the back of a pick up truck to get some level photographs. If one of the members at the station not had that pick up truck, you would have seen more photographs of the underneath of trucks.
On a personal note - this FD really impressed me. These guys have no money, have an assortment of hand me down fire trucks, and basically have used band aides to keep them running. Each truck is "adopted" by a member and their job is to keep it going. They are in desperate need of some new used trucks and are hoping that a FD will be able to donate a truck to them. I am currently working on trying to find them a used truck, along with another fellow member of firepics. If your station happens to have an engine or engine - tanker that is willing to donate, please contact me at mnsand@comcast.net.
Unit 151 is a 1977 Mack CF600 with a 1000/500. It has serial number 1877. The Mack previously ran from Norton, Virginia (I have posted Norton's current apparatus elsewhere in this thread).
Mike Sanders
Ashburn, VA
Mike Sanders
Winchester, VA
Winchester, VA
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