Fire brigade water rescue unit

[playmofire]

At the end of last week we had 100mm of rain in 24 hours and that had quite dramatic effects the City of Ripon, about two miles away. Three rivers run through the city (population about 12,000 - it's a city not because of its size but because it has a cathedral) and so there was quite a bit of flooding of commercial and residential properties, plus roads and bridges closed, while an old people's home had to be evacuated. The fire brigade were out with pumps from other towns, plus a massive major pumping unit which can pump 8,000 litres a minute and water rescue units. All this reminded me that I have a water rescue custom which I haven't shown, so here it is.

First, a couple of photos of the unit as a whole showing the tow vehicle, the trailer and the boat. The tow vehicle is a customised 3070, with the original blue chassis replaced with a grey one and the original wheels replaced with some grey ones from the 3614 racing service van.  The wording on the sides, bonnet (hood) and roof sign of the tow unit are customs I had made, while the red stripes and chevrons on the bumpers (fenders) are commercially produced. The sticker on the tailgate is a Playmobil one.

The trailer is the blue car trailer which I bought when it was available through DS (I think it's one of Playmobil's best productions) and the boat also came from the DS catalogue. The custom of the boat (which appeared on Playmoboard) predates the TRU set, so whether or not Playmobil pinched my idea I don't know. The changes to the boat are the blue light on the bow and the RESCUE transfers

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Some views of the stowage of equipment and the equipment carried now.

The digging tools are for clearing away undergrowth etc to reach the water. The other small tools are for use as necessary.

The first aid equipment consists of a defibrilator (red box), oxygen (white box and cylinder), general first aid (gloves etc) and general first aid (drugs). The crew have EMT qualifications.

[playmofire]

More of the equipment carried - small tools and clothing - and the crew.

The small tools are for use as necessary, e.g. where there are wood or other obstructions to remove.

Not shown (but just visible under the bow on the shot of the boat from above) are two lengths of metal sheets for use over soft ground.

The crew member on the left is wearing the old style gear and the one on the right the new style. The unit is always accompanied by at least one other appliance, usually a pump but also where appropriate one of the rescue units. These provide additional manpower and equipment.

Thanks for looking, and I hope you liked the custom.

[Little Jo]

Very cool custom, Gordon, as usual ... and again very well equiped those guys

Please can you provide a closup shot of the boot front with the blue warning light. This seems very clever and I just want to copy this for my fire brigade rescue boat. I also bought recently the direct service boat and wanted to "customize" it with some sticker/decals for usage with my fire brigade, just to nationalize the 4428 rescue boat. So the light on pole is the perfect something for the boat. What parts did you use? Do you have any part numbers of these? (I assume the light is from the old space series but from what is the fitting pole?)

[playmofire]

Here are the details on the blue light, Jochen.

The light itself is made by a German model boat accessory firm called Robbe and comes in three parts - the blue lamp cover, a metal (aluminium?) lamp base and a bulb with wire so it would be possible to make a version with a working flashing light with a bit of electronics know-how .  The kit is also available in orange and red.  The stem on which the light is mounted is made up of two lengths of aluminium or brass tube bought from a model shop (I forget which but as I have painted it I suspect it was brass).  I widened the socket on the bow of the boat designed for the flag and slotted one length of tube in and glued it in place as well as I could with two-pack epoxy (there isn't a large surface for the glue to grip). The second length was then slotted into the first and glued it in place and painted the whole lot then painted.  I then assembled the blue lamp cover to the lamp base (omitting the bulb) and finally glued this to the end of the tubing. 

Here are a couple of photos.

(What looks like a bulb in the picture is actually the end of the length of tube which goes up into the lamp cover to give extra rigidity to the lamp mount.  The tube was brass.)

[Tim_w]

Hello  Gordon 

I am sorry, i dont know how i missed this thread fist time around 
As allways i am really impressed with your attention to detail and the addition of all the tools required for the task at hand. I have been considering a water rescue unit for some time now but finding the right vehicle for the job has been difficult. I think you have hit on the perfect combination here Gordon  .

Kindest Regards  Tim 

[FireChief]

Hey Gordon,

Very nice unit you have there, as Tim said you always have the right tools for the task. It really does look good as with all of the other customs you have shown recently.



Ben