"Sorry, Kids. Fire Stations Are Ditching Fire Poles" ~ cnn.com

[Xavier_Godshore]

Yet another link from cnn.com heralding the demise of another "signature apparatus" of an era gone by.

http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,2039352,00.html?hpt=C2

Curiously, does anyone here collect any vintage firefighter items/gear/etc...?

 

[Brad Bowers]

Station No. 4, just a block over and a block down from our house, is the last remaining fire station in Pueblo with a fire pole. Sadly, the station is being replaced in the next couple of years by a new station farther away, but at least this classic station will be reused as something else, with the fire pole remaining.

Brad

 

[1961MJS]

Hi

I go to lunch here, and they didn't leave the poles intact. Bummer, that would be kind of fun.

http://www.jetbbq.com/

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

 

[scottyrocks]

Im sure that back in the day poles were space-efficient, quick to use and simple to install, especially compared to stairs, or slides, if anyone had even thought of them. Slides were probably more complicated to manufacture, install, and design into the space alloted. Just because something was a staple doesnt always mean it remains the best option.

 

[B.J. Hedberg]

Im sure that back in the day poles were space-efficient, quick to use and simple to install, especially compared to stairs, or slides, if anyone had even thought of them. Slides were probably more complicated to manufacture, install, and design into the space alloted. Just because something was a staple doesnt always mean it remains the best option.

The one story firehouse is far more efficient, but just not as fun. And, of course, you won’t get the great news story about the slightly overweight firefighter who didn’t quite fit through the hole. Can't picture a fire slide myself.

 

[Caity Lynn]

^Kinda on topic, When my grandmother went to school the fire escape was a slide. It is now in the town park, the beloved "rocket ship slide"

 

[scottyrocks]

The one story firehouse is far more efficient, but just not as fun. And, of course, you won’t get the great news story about the slightly overweight firefighter who didn’t quite fit through the hole. Can't picture a fire slide myself.

I would think that the multi-story firehouse, like most multi-story buildings, were for square-footage optimization on a given footprint. Hence the simple, time-honored pole.

 

[Teekay44]

Having run in a Station with a fire pole I can tell you that the first time you jump onto the pole and look down its like you are jumping out into nothing. Most apparatus bays are 25-30ft high. The pole looks like a coffee stirrer. And if you don't move at the bottom the next fireman comes down on your head! Fun though.

Yes and I do have some vintage gear. Fun to collect.

 

[Foofoogal]

When my grandmother went to school the fire escape was a slide. It is now in the town park, the beloved "rocket ship slide"

Off topic but I went to a school that had this. We looked so forward to fire drills.

 

[scottyrocks]

And if you don't move at the bottom the next fireman comes down on your head! Fun though.

I was thinking about that. You have to get out of the way pronto!

 

[Shangas]

If my popular history is correct, the fire-pole was installed in a firehouse in the US in the late 19th century as an experiement. The subject firehouse was able to get its men to emergencies significantly faster than other firehouses which did not have this newfangled 'fire pole' and the time-saving benefits of this new invention were quickly seen as something that all firehouses should have, and thus, its use spread from there.

A pity to see that it's now going the way of the dodo...

 

[Mr_D.]

Im sure that back in the day poles were space-efficient, quick to use and simple to install, especially compared to stairs, or slides, if anyone had even thought of them. Slides were probably more complicated to manufacture, install, and design into the space alloted. Just because something was a staple doesnt always mean it remains the best option.

I think the main point is back in the day everyone wasn't sue happy.

 

[scottyrocks]

I think the main point is back in the day everyone wasn't sue happy.

Absolutely, but if you think about it, a slide, if done correctly, leaves waaay less room for error. Once youre on it, its a lot harder to hurt yourself. If you let go, you still arive safely at the bottom. I dont have to tell you what happens if you let go at the top of a pole.

 

[Mr_D.]

Absolutely, but if you think about it, a slide, if done correctly, leaves waaay less room for error. Once youre on it, its a lot harder to hurt yourself. If you let go, you still arive safely at the bottom. I dont have to tell you what happens if you let go at the top of a pole.

I can still see people falling down a slide.

And for the idea of stairs. Yes running down stairs is a lot safer then a slide or pole *roll eyes*

If the pole has to be removed, then let's stick with 1 story buildings.

 

[Haversack]

Here in San Francisco, the fire house brass pole is still in widespread use as the majority of the City's firehouses are two-story and will likely continue to be so due to the cost of land.

http://guardiansofthecity.org/sffd/firehouses/current/index.html

The longest firepole I've seen was at a post I was assigned to in Germany back in the 1980s. It was an old Luftwaffe fighter base outside of Nurnberg. The firehouse was under one of the hangers tucked into the hillside. The drop was nearly 40'. Our battalion's S-4 occupied the space and we had to keep the pole blocked off so to prevent accidents.

Haversack

 

[Big Man]

I can remember as a small child visiting at the Fire Station in downtown Asheville, NC (we used to go shopping in Asheville on a regular basis in the 1960's). The Firemen there were always patient with me, and allowed me to climb all over the trucks. I vividly recall the brass pole in that station. To a little boy, it looked like it was 100 feet high. I always wanted to slid down the pole, but was too little to give it a try.

The time the Firemen took to let a little boy play around the station way back then paid off. I grew-up to be a Firefighter myself, and am not the Assistant Chief of our local Volunteer Fire Department. We've got a one-story station; but if it were a two-story, we most assuredly would have a fire pole.