I guess like most fire buffs, we all have our particular area of interest. Some guys might like apparatus from a certain State, or a certain chassis or type such as tillers.
Me, well, other than apparatus from the USA, I really like apparatus from Central and Eastern Europe. This is a part of the world where in some cases, fire departments don't have the funding to provide the latest equipment and you will find apparatus still in use from the 1960's and 70's. Likewise, countries such as the Czech Republic have the very latest in technology.
Each year, a group of us will take a week or so long vacation, hire a vehicle and explore this part of the world. Often they bring fantastic results, warm hospitality and interesting fire trucks. Sometimes they bring absolute craziness!
Allow me to share some of my finds with you.
First stop, Slovenia. A beautiful country which is full of mountains, lakes and greenery. The capital city is Ljubljana. Most fire departments are volunteer and whilst they have a lot of modern apparatus, they still operate some older, second-hand equipment. The volunteer fire brigade of Smlednik has this 1984 Dennis RS133 Pumper which originated from my home town of Liverpool. It has a 1000gpm pump and a 500 gallon water tank.
![[Image: PGD-Smlednik-1.jpg]](https://i.postimg.cc/kgHqcxvC/PGD-Smlednik-1.jpg)
find the nearest shell
Me, well, other than apparatus from the USA, I really like apparatus from Central and Eastern Europe. This is a part of the world where in some cases, fire departments don't have the funding to provide the latest equipment and you will find apparatus still in use from the 1960's and 70's. Likewise, countries such as the Czech Republic have the very latest in technology.
Each year, a group of us will take a week or so long vacation, hire a vehicle and explore this part of the world. Often they bring fantastic results, warm hospitality and interesting fire trucks. Sometimes they bring absolute craziness!
Allow me to share some of my finds with you.
First stop, Slovenia. A beautiful country which is full of mountains, lakes and greenery. The capital city is Ljubljana. Most fire departments are volunteer and whilst they have a lot of modern apparatus, they still operate some older, second-hand equipment. The volunteer fire brigade of Smlednik has this 1984 Dennis RS133 Pumper which originated from my home town of Liverpool. It has a 1000gpm pump and a 500 gallon water tank.
find the nearest shell
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