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16th January 2018 -  The Great Fire of London Parts 1 & 2

Bob Ford

At our meeting on 16th January, President Brian Swaine, welcomed one of our own members to talk about fire.     Bob Ford spent his career in the fire service.   He  started as a fireman in  the City of Gloucester brigade.   You needed to be able to carry a 10-stone man 100 yards in 2 minutes.  In 1964 he became a Leading Fireman, and a Station Officer in 1970, finally working in the Divisional Office responsible for training, safety and maintenance     He then worked for the Government inspecting and certifying Government properties throughout South West England.    Moving on, he became responsible for fire safety in many important locations such as GCHQ, 10 Downing Street, the Cabinet Office and the MI5 building.   Somehow he also found himself having to check Ascot Racecourse which he enjoyed doing on Ladies Day!   Retirement beckoned but he was soon headhunted to join a team responsible for inspecting the fire safety of embassies and consulates abroad.    This enabled him and his wife to enjoy short holidays in some interesting places. Bob described the development of fire fighting over the years, starting with the Great Fire of London in 1666.  Streets were narrow, buildings were of timber with large overhangs, roofs were thatched.    Surely a disaster waiting to happen.    Insured properties were identified with fire-marks by the companies.     Night watchmen were employed to look out for fires, but all they had available were a barrow with buckets of water, an inefficient squirting device, a rake for pulling off thatch and a rattle to wake people up.    When the Great Fire took hold, Samuel Pepys and the Naval Board decided to blow up houses to create a fire break.    In future, houses were built without overhangs.     After the 1666 fire, insurance companies started their own brigades with 2-man pumps which required a bucket-train from the nearest water supply, later developing wheeled manual pumps manned by a volunteer crew, then becoming horse-drawn with steam driven pumps.  Horses were still being used up to 1913.    In rural areas, there were many local volunteer brigades sponsored by district councils and local businesses, while in the cities they were mainly full-time professionals.     Insurance company brigades existed up until the 1830's.   After the Houses of Parliament burnt down in 1834, the London Fire Brigade was formed.    In 1900 there were still 1600 separate brigades in England, being formed into County brigades by 1933.     The War saw the nationalisation of the fire service with men and machines being sent wherever they were needed.  County brigades were combined into larger units for the economies of scale and greater efficiency, and are now known as the Fire and Rescue Service.  Great strides have been made in the design of vehicles and equipment.    Big heavy turntable ladders are now being replaced by much lighter, more portable ladders.     Bob illustrated his fascinating talk with numerous photographs, a fireman's axe, a Fire Captain's brass helmet and a big heavy brass bell.   

 

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