The John Bean Division of FMC Corporation in Lansing, Michigan built Forward Control Fire Engines. Some unusual custom units delivered to the Chicago Fire Department were featured in an article in Automobile magazine in February 1999. Seen here is Unit 914, equipped with a generator and two banks of floodlights for illuminating fire scenes. The Chicago firehouse that quartered several of these rigs was nicknamed "Disneyland."
Unit 674, built on a 1961 FC-150 chassis, was known as "Little John" and was designed for directing a high-volume master stream, supplied by several pumpers, at large fires. Jack Calderone, editor of Fire Apparatus Journal, supplied this photo, and says the body seen here was built in the CFD shops.
Unit 674 was not Chicago's first FC pressure wagon. Jeep Pressure No. 1 was a 1959 Willys with a deluge gun behind the cab. The little truck could drive closer to a fire than a larger truck could, laying the hose from a pumper. Photo from the Ken Buchanan collection. See also an archival left side photo (50K JPEG.)
Jeep Pressure No. 1 was later renamed Deluge Unit 671, with no apparent upgrades other than a new red and black paint job. It was photographed by Dick Adelman in April, 1975.
Ken Buchanan also provided this photo of Chicago's Smoke Ejector No. 1. He says, "This 1961 Willys Jeep carried portable smoke ejector fans, plus a large one permanently mounted on the rig, which used canvas tubes to vent the smoke (like a big vacuum cleaner.) Note the green flasher light on the upper passenger side of the box. All Chicago FD rigs have the marine-style red to port, green to starboard lighting."
Thanks to Gary Urbanowicz, Ken Buchanan and Jack Calderone. -- Derek Redmond
See more Jeep FC Fire Engines.
Also on The CJ3B Page, see a Chicago Fire Department 1946 Jeep.
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