Kansas City area fire apparatus

[MFD76]

[quote name='Toneslider12' post='307891' date='May 23 2009, 12:59 ']The Green Lawrence rigs are so very rarely seen, good work and keep um coming! I think the HME Truck Co. looks very sharp with the old colors.[/quote]



I am glad you like them. I agree Ladder 5 is unique with the Low profile cab and Super HD Smeal Ladder. It also carries a 40ft Bangor Ladder in the rear. Ladder 5 used to be at Fire House 1 as Ladder 1 and needed the low profie to clear the bay door. Ladder 2 and 5 were specialy designed for Lawrence. Chief McSwan wanted Ladders that were super heavy duty to evacuate students from the Dorms on the KU Campus. Sturdy they are.



The green is a unique color and is all Lawrence although the firemen for years pushed for red but Chief McSwan stood by his decision. He brought Green, EMS, Quints, Testing for promotion, Part-time firemen called Extra Board, and ISO Class II rating. He was quite the change agent and many of his changes made Lawrence a much better fire department. Although not always popular he was very respected in the Kansas Fire Service. I found him to be an extremly nice man.



Ladder 2 the spare is a 1986 Spartan-LTI-FMC Constoga 100ft the is a carbon copy of the 1982 Pierce Arrow LTI's that Metro Dade ordered. They were the LTI Tower Ladders without the buckett. In fact Lawrence rejected the first Ladder 2 because LTI used a differnt ladder than what was Metro Dade spec.



Sadly romor is the current chief would like to remove Ladder 5 and Engine 5 from service in the next two years and place a Tower Ladder Quint at 5's with the Heavy Rescue that is on order from Pierce right now. The new Tower Quint will not respond city wide and only in its first due for fires. It will be hard becuse Ladder 5 is the city wide Truck and works as the only Truck at fires. It also has specialized equiptment and Lots and Lots of ground ladders that most quints don't have room for. Oh well we will see many members are rejecting this idea.