fire trucks ( WW2) east coast Australia

[Mike K]

It varied from state to state . In NSW , they were still using CMP's into the 1980's in some areas . I recall seeing a very nice F60L Ford still in service in Batlow in 1981 . Cargo , near Orange had a C15A fire truck until around 1980 . The big problem with them was speed , with house fires , by the time the Blitz arrived , the house was burnt to the ground . Some rural NSW brigades had US6 Studebakers too .

QLD hung onto CMP's and still had a few CMP's as late as the early 90's or later even . I recall spotting one on the evening news around 1993 .

The CFA here made an attempt to standardise and quite a few units bought Austins in the 1950's . These replaced the many WW2 WOT2's and Morris CS8's and Bedford MW's that were issued to the CFA as early as 1944 . The Sassafras CFA unit in the Dandenongs had a 1940 Marmon - Herrington in the 1950's , its big drawback was the canvas top on the cab , which had habit of catching on fire from embers ! Upper Beaconsfield of all things had a Dodge Weapons carrier right up to the late 1970's . I have been told that Ferntree Gully had a GMC 6X6 into the 1960's .

They are all long gone now . With insurance problems and other safety issues taking precedence over practical views. Can you imagine the uproar if some volunteer fire fighter was injured because of an old truck .

Mike