Shelby fire department to celebrate 50 years

[seamusg]

Bill Teise, a member of the department from 1958 to 1980, recalled driving a small vehicle called a "grass truck" to a fire, sticking a nozzle out the window and driving around the fire pouring on what water he could while waiting for his fellow firefighters to arrive.

http://www.macombdaily.com/stories/0...helby001.shtml

[RyltnVFD]

At first, I thought this was Shelby, Oceana County.

But it is amazing how little training they had back in the '50's.

[Thunderbolt]

My uncle was a firefighter for the Milan, Mich VFD, and back in the 1940s when he first joined, they would extinguish most fires without any breathing apparatus. Moreover, the training they received back then was really primitive compared to what is standard practice today. Likewise, HAZMAT training was all but non-existent back then. We sure have come a long ways in the past 60 years!

73's

Ron

[seamusg]

Shelby plans to upgrade 2 fire stations

The buildings are outmoded, chief says; improvements needed for growing department.

SHELBY TOWNSHIP -- Times have changed since George Morehouse became a firefighter 29 years ago -- but some of the fire stations in the township have not.

"When I first started on the job, there were very few women firefighters," said Morehouse, chief of the Shelby Township Fire Department, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.

"And back then, most of what we did was put out fires. Now, 85 percent of our runs are medical-related."

http://www.detnews.com/2005/macomb/0...B04-284376.htm