Gary, In

[Engine33Truck]

My sarcasm meter was off, lol. Some of us think they look good, but I do miss the old Ford/E-Ones. Until a few years ago there was 1 left at the airport. The '89 Seagraves, you can roll down a hill, insult their mother & they will still run. Gary almost bought several engines from ALF in 2008 but there was that pesky bankruptcy & issues with Truck 1. Station closure is on a "rolling brownout" schedule anymore. Station 10 has been closed for almost 3 years, 11 is closed most of the time. Usually it's a company instead of a house, like Engine 1 being OOS but Trk-1 is in-service. Station 2 only has the squad anymore & 13 is usually the truck.

I love Ford rigs and Seagraves, but I've never found anything that runs like an ALF Century.  My FC's was bounced off the house and with the exception of the 5inch discharge being ripped off, she was still ready to go.  As long as ALF gets their priorities straight, I think that they'll be as great as they used to be.

I take it Gary is doing that "rolling brownout" because of budget issues?  When will FD's realize that closing stations and bownouts isn't cutting the budget, it's playing with the lives of their citizens and firefighters.

[squad546]

For whatever reason Gary never had any ALF Century engines, only trucks & 1 snorkel. They only have the Ferraras due to them being the lowest bidder, at least that's the official story. The brownouts were supposed to prevent layoffs, that started in 2005. Didn't work so they went ahead and laid off 34 back in December, they also have tried cutting back the number of on-duty med units to 3-4 per shift. If a house has 2 companies, like engine & truck, it's one or the other, not both in-service. There's also talk of turning the airport station over to a private contractor. The mayoral election is next month so things should get interesting!

Sadly all the candidates talk about making Gary as good as it was in the 1950s. That just isn't possible in the next 20 years short of a miracle.

[Engine33Truck]

I think all of us that buff or have personal (or sentimental) connections to a big paid FD want them to return to their glory days.  I know I'd love for Cumberland City to return to those days of 4 well-staffed engines, 2 trucks and so on.  The only way Gary, Cumberland City or anywhere else will start to rise rather than continue to fall is if the economy rebounds.

Although WV seems to not be affected with layoffs and the like (except Huntington City who's in big financial trouble for whatever reason) is because of the natural disasters in the rest of the world has made coal using companies place so many orders for WV coal that the mines and railroads can't keep up.

Keep me posted, I'm interested to see how things go!

[squad546]

I think all of us that buff or have personal (or sentimental) connections to a big paid FD want them to return to their glory days.  I know I'd love for Cumberland City to return to those days of 4 well-staffed engines, 2 trucks and so on.  The only way Gary, Cumberland City or anywhere else will start to rise rather than continue to fall is if the economy rebounds.

Although WV seems to not be affected with layoffs and the like (except Huntington City who's in big financial trouble for whatever reason) is because of the natural disasters in the rest of the world has made coal using companies place so many orders for WV coal that the mines and railroads can't keep up.

Keep me posted, I'm interested to see how things go!

I cant speak for Cumberland City, but I have a feeling they have a better chance of better future then Gary. Politics plays a huge part in the problems in Gary. Hammond Indiana, the city between Gary & Chicago, has managed to get it's act together since the 1980s & dropped it's crime rate. The layoffs they have are few & far between. As I mentioned before, it's sad but a state takeover is the best option for Gary at this point! Every politician & boss would be fired & they would start over. I hate to talk politics though, usually leads to fights!

[Engine33Truck]

I cant speak for Cumberland City, but I have a feeling they have a better chance of better future then Gary. Politics plays a huge part in the problems in Gary. Hammond Indiana, the city between Gary & Chicago, has managed to get it's act together since the 1980s & dropped it's crime rate. The layoffs they have are few & far between. As I mentioned before, it's sad but a state takeover is the best option for Gary at this point! Every politician & boss would be fired & they would start over. I hate to talk politics though, usually leads to fights!

I hate talking politics either, myself.  It seems to me that the politicians with the biggest mouths are often the bullies who are only in it for themselves and couldn't care less about us (firefighters), our police brethren, or the average citizens.  But enough of that, we can only change that by voting.  I hope the best for Gary, though from what you say it may take a miracle.

[yfdgricker]

Those last two trucks look U-G-L-Y! Hope they can do something with them. Anyone have any photos of Gary's Mack MCs?

Are you referring to the wrecked rigs or the Pierce twins?  They're all four ugly 

I was thinking the squad and ladder but I'll go with all 4

[squad546]

Those last two trucks look U-G-L-Y! Hope they can do something with them. Anyone have any photos of Gary's Mack MCs?

Are you referring to the wrecked rigs or the Pierce twins?  They're all four ugly 

I was thinking the squad and ladder but I'll go with all 4

I was going to make a comment about ALF, but then I noticed Engine33's signature  Some of the rigs have faded so badly it looks like they're purple over red, instead of blue.

[Engine33Truck]

I was going to make a comment about ALF, but then I noticed Engine33's signature  Some of the rigs have faded so badly it looks like they're purple over red, instead of blue.

Thanks 

[squad546]

Squad 2's rig, 1993 Pierce/2000 Ferrara, sitting at the old city shops. It is officially listed as being a write-off & will probably be sold off for scrap. Any usable parts have been salvaged.

[squad546]

Engine 5, using 9 as a spare, took someone gunfire from a shotgun a couple weeks ago working at a rubbish fire. Fortunately no injuries. Although the engineer was at the pump panel when it happened. Not real easy to see, but the small spots are from the buckshot.

[squad546]

Some miscellaneous fire photos from Gary.

[FAO25]

Some miscellaneous fire photos from Gary.

Okay, explain the Artillery Tractor in last picture. Was this during rioting? 

[Engine33Truck]

Some miscellaneous fire photos from Gary.

I love that Seagrave aerial, but I'm with FAO25...why is there an artillery tractor in the older photo?

[squad546]

I was told they got it surplus from the military from one of the NIKE missile sites that Gary used to have. I think they bought with the intention of using during their riots, but it didn't work as well as they had hoped.

[FAO25]

I was told they got it surplus from the military from one of the NIKE missile sites that Gary used to have. I think they bought with the intention of using during their riots, but it didn't work as well as they had hoped.

Looks like it's got the wrong kind of gun mounted on it for riot duty.