AUTOCULT - DODGE - WDX TRUCK POWER WAGON BRUSH BREAKER USA 1946

Main feature … ram protection In the USA a special and own type of vehicles, which is perfectly adapted to the numerous conditions of the rural areas, has established in the field of forest fire fighting. The countless firehouses were quite creative. For financial reasons they draw on decommissioned, heavy military trucks and gave them a second life as fire trucks. The trucks were converted and equipped with huge hose reels, massive water tanks, powerful cable winches, additional headlights and other necessary tools for their new purpose. But the main features of these trucks were large-dimensioned bull bars, side protection or massive rollover bars around the whole driver’s cab. As unique as the design of the vehicle structures was as individual were also the solutions of the ram protection. Some trucks had safeguards made of stable, welded tubes whereas others were fitted with huge metal plates. Even if the technical implementation of these ram protections were different, they all served the same purpose; to enable the passing of rough forest passages, dense undergrowth and other imponderables without damaging the fire truck. This special kind of safeguard became a thing in the USA and proved successful. Even today this ram protection is common with that kind of fire trucks. Representative for the generation of the early fire trucks stands the Dodge Power Wagon Brush Breaker that was put into service with a water tank with capacity of 200 gallons in 1946. From 1946 to 1980 it was in use for the city of Falmouth (Barnstable County, Massachusetts). Afterwards it preserved the residents of Naushon Island from fire until 2009.