Dusty Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 Westmorland had two so either GYR 769 or GYR 793. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brooky Posted October 10, 2011 Share Posted October 10, 2011 Westmorland had two so either GYR 769 or GYR 793. Many thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runflat Posted October 15, 2011 Share Posted October 15, 2011 (edited) Some more photographs from my Grandfather's album (not for reproduction) - these are the more interesting ones. Sadly no more QLs, but I hope they are of interest. This first group, dated 29 Sept 1945, are described as being of the Company's billet at Ahrensburg, near Hamburg. But it is clearly more than sleeping accommodation as the first picture, with a Dodge D15 outside, has in the grounds a totem pole marked "Fire Service Control". Note also the control board in the fourth picture marked "106 Fire Fighting Company". Can anyone identify the precise location, and does the building still survive? A couple of pictures of the Company's Austin tilly (someone called Frank being in the second photo); and someone called Charlie Freestone on a motobike (I'm not sure what type). These last two are of Lubeck fire station. The notice reads "Army Fire Service - Headquarters 62 First Class Fire Brigade" Edited October 15, 2011 by Runflat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
champer Posted October 15, 2011 Share Posted October 15, 2011 Bedford trucker posted this query on my behalf before I became a member. The QL Army Fire Service is GYR 762 reputably to have been with Ripon fire service, probably late 70's. Some of the parts with it were wrapped in exchange and mart Feb 82. I could do with some documentation to try and retain the reg. It's in surprisingly good condition, and is a runner with about 7500 on the clock, how accurate that is, who knows. It's now tucked up in my shed, it probably wo'nt be started till next year, any info would be great, thanks to all who have replied so far, extremely useful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runflat Posted October 15, 2011 Share Posted October 15, 2011 Welcome on watch, Champer. We look forward to hearing more as the rebuild progresses. Do rub the doors down carefully to see whether the brigade markings are still visable, and the army ones under that. The bad news is that the GYR licence series was issued from London; and I believe the records were destroyed on creation of the DVLA. Your best chances of reviving the number probably lie in being able to find old Brigade records. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ted angus Posted October 15, 2011 Share Posted October 15, 2011 (edited) Bedford trucker posted this query on my behalf before I became a member. The QL Army Fire Service is GYR 762 reputably to have been with Ripon fire service, probably late 70's. Some of the parts with it were wrapped in exchange and mart Feb 82. I could do with some documentation to try and retain the reg. It's in surprisingly good condition, and is a runner with about 7500 on the clock, how accurate that is, who knows. It's now tucked up in my shed, it probably wo'nt be started till next year, any info would be great, thanks to all who have replied so far, extremely useful. Champer, welcome, afraid it doesn't look as if your truck saw service at Ripon. But I have good news; Firstly some background : For unitary purposes the geographic county of Yorkshire was divided into 3 seperate authorities, East Riding, West Riding & North Riding. These QL machines were originally passed to the National Fire Service in 1945/6 and on denationalisation in 1948 they passed to the newly formed local authority brigades. GYR 762 was at Station B10 of the newly formed "North Riding County Fire Brigade", The address of Station B10 was The White Horse Public House, Kirkbymoorside. At some point later Station B10 relocated to a purpose built station in NEW ROAD , Kirkbymooreside (this was pre 1964). I think we can safely assume that GYR762 would have been at Kirkbymooreside with the NFS and that the pub or adjacent pub buildings was a location taken during the war for the much expanded fire service. I have taken this info from the fleet list of the N Riding brigade on its formation in 1948. I also have a 1964 fleet list and your machine was no longer on the brigade strength. In local authority service most of the QLs were being sold off by the late 1950s with a few surviving until the mid 1960s. If I learn or unearth anymore I will post. I have had a good look at Google Earth, the White horse Inn is still there, there is a back entrance which was possibly many years ago a courtyard, this may well have been where the fire vehicles were parked; The pub may have been chosen as the fire station as it would have already had a phone, would have had a room the fire service could take over and had a courtyard ??? There is currently a fire station on New Road but it is a fairly new construction. It will be worth writing to the Officer ic the fire station and to the Landlord at the pub. There may well be old photos hanging in either buildings. Many of these long established country fire stations have a fairly good record of their history. Another port of call could be the HQ of the N Yorks fire & rescue. I will contact some of my fire anorack contacts . TED Edited October 16, 2011 by ted angus Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ted angus Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 UPDATE. I have had some feedback from e mails I sent. GYR 762 also served at Malton and Guisborough. The Kirkbymoorside Station opened in New Road in the early 1950s and was on the same site as the current one. She was definately at Kirkbymoorside in 1967 . Believed she soldiered on much later than other ex Army QLs and was still on the books of N Riding in 1970. So it might be worth writing to Malton fire station and Guisborough. But note due to boundary changes, Guisborough is now a Cleveland fire service station. TED Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
champer Posted October 17, 2011 Share Posted October 17, 2011 You have some excellent information there Ted. I've cleaned a data plate today and found the chassis and engine number, Chassis QLC/119 44496 Engine QL 52052. They were a bit rusty, hopefully I've read them correctly. Do any of your lists link those numbers to the registration number? I will certainly contact all you have mentioned to try and build up some history. Stuart Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runflat Posted October 22, 2011 Share Posted October 22, 2011 Champer, that looks an excellent basis - I'll watch progress with interest. For further inspiration, here are the other photos from my collection (not for reproduction). I've no information on these and they were found at different times. Enjoy! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
champer Posted October 23, 2011 Share Posted October 23, 2011 Thanks for that runflat, it shows the kit and it's always of hitorical interest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
champer Posted November 4, 2011 Share Posted November 4, 2011 Bit more info, got to fit it in while building a house, it's contract S7178 catalogue number 221. So if it's 221 of that contract that would make it L5863451. same contract as your pictures. Stuart Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
champer Posted November 21, 2011 Share Posted November 21, 2011 Does anybody have pictures showing military reg nos of the army fire service QL's in the range L5863231 -L5863520, so that I can search the military side of it's history. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
champer Posted November 26, 2011 Share Posted November 26, 2011 Here's one in national service Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runflat Posted March 9, 2012 Share Posted March 9, 2012 From Motor Transport magazine, 26 August, 1944: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Runflat Posted June 24, 2012 Share Posted June 24, 2012 Thanks to Dave C for this film find of L5295052: http://www.britishpathe.com/video/stills/fire-in-german-farm-house Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julian2 Posted November 14, 2019 Share Posted November 14, 2019 Hi, I was really pleased to find this site and wonder if you are all still interested in the Army Fire Service (AFS). My father was in the AFS and I have tried hard to find information over the past twenty years about the service. I visited the Imperial War Museum at London some years ago and found one document, written just after the war, on the history of the AFS, which, if I remember gave some specifications of the lorries and tender pumps. The Oxford Die Cast Co. makes a excellent QL Fire Service lorry, of which I bought one. Presumably, the company had access to the original plans to manufacture so much detail. https://www.oxforddiecast.co.uk/collections/by-era/products/bedford-qld-army-fire-service-76qld001 I visited The Logistics Corps (what was the old Royal Pioneer Corps, of which the AFS was a part of) at Deepcut Barracks, Woking, and looked from a handful of bits they held and I photographed. There wasn't a great deal there. I tracked down a corps magazine held by the National Library, named 'The Collecting Head' (a kind of manifold that connects onto the tender pump for the hoses) and there were several issues on microfilm. I don't remember any vehicle photos particularly, but some photos of the platoons and various soldier's poems, stories and jokes. I did find a photo of my dad with his outfit in Algiers, which cheered me up no end. At the National Archives, I managed to track down all of Dad's unit diaries, but because the firemen were attached to other Army units, they take a bit of tracking down. Each lorry and tender pump had one Sergeant and a lower rank, and they would be attached and often called on for non-fire duties, such as directing traffic! Anyway, I'm very pleased to have seen what you've found and please let me know if you are interested in more information from me, as I have done a fair bit of digging. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
morris c8 fat Posted November 15, 2019 Share Posted November 15, 2019 i dont know if this is of any intrest on evil-pay now regulations for army fire service in war 1942 item number 372833498356. no conection to the seller. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.