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Orland Fire Protection District history

This from Mike Summa for #TBT:

For TBT here is Orland Truck 120, a 1975 ALF 0/0/ 100′ rearmount.  A few years later I took this picture after rehab.

Mike Summa

Mike Summa photo

Mike Summa photo

Tags: #TBT, American LaFrance Ladder Chief, American LaFrance Water Chief, Mike Summa, Orland Fire Protection District history, throw back thursday, throwbackthursday, vintage American LaFrance fire truck

This entry was posted on October 18, 2018, 11:00 AM and is filed under Fire Department History, Historic fire apparatus, throwbackthursday. You can follow any responses to this entry through RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

8 Comments

• #1 by Mike on October 25, 2018 - 10:23 PM

  

  Mabas 21 your info on the Alsip truck is partially correct. The cab installed was actually a Century Series cab with Century 2000 series headlights (square). Not sure how that happened but never seen anything else since. Orland had the truck and a Century series engine that was refurbed with the addition of jumpseat doors and roof only. They also had 2 other engines with 1000 series cabs that when refurbed came back with Century 2000 cabs. So you are correct.
  Orland had 1 ALF truck and 3 ALF engines.

• #2 by MABAS 21 on October 20, 2018 - 7:27 AM

  

  Drew,
  American Lafrance used to have a factory service center in University Park, Illinois, which has been long closed. I am not sure what year(s) Orland F.P.D. did so, but I believe they had 2 or 3 ALF Century pumpers and this truck completely refurbished including the addition of cab enclosures. When the truck was refurbed, the outriggers and aerial were replaced. The new aerial is a Water Chief with piping on each side of the main that supplies the ladder pipe at the tip.

  As someone else previously posted, Alsip F.D. had their 1967 or 68 Sutphen midmount platform also refurbished there. It came out with a ALF Century 2000 fully enclosed cab and the Water Chief main installed.

• #3 by Jim Smith on October 18, 2018 - 10:27 PM

  

  The new ladder is completely differnt it was called the “Water Chief” the old ladder was not. Front of the cab says “High Pride”.

  The lift cylinders on the old ladder actually angled to the rear so you can barely see it behind the control pedestal.

• #4 by Drew Smith on October 18, 2018 - 6:12 PM

  

  The ladder on the newer photo is a completely different ladder it appears. The outriggers are taller and besides the waterway appearing, the ladder tip is different. Also, you cant see the lift cylinders in the older photo. Does anyone know the story behind this?

  Any ideas what the lettering on the front of the cab in the older photos says?

• #5 by Mike on October 18, 2018 - 5:25 PM

  

  Looks like they added a waterway when it was refurbished also.

• #6 by Crabby Milton on October 18, 2018 - 3:39 PM

  

  Very nice old classic.
  RIP ALF.

• #7 by Mike on October 18, 2018 - 2:35 PM

  

  Mike nice photos thanks for posting. You’re right Rich they had it for awhile. In 2005 they donated it along with an American LaFrance engine to Bogalusa, Louisiana after Hurricane Katrina.

  You can’t tell in the photo but the lift cylinders for the ladder are a different color than the truck. The lift cylinders were painted the same color as Alsips truck. The Orland ladder was destined for the Alsip truck (the former Sutphen).

  Also, in the summer time Orland’s shops would remove the jumpseat doors because of the heat in the cab.

• #8 by Rich on October 18, 2018 - 12:21 PM

  

  They had that truck for a long time

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