A pictorial history-from the first horse-drawn pumpers to the newest ladder trucks-presents more than 400 NYC firefighting trucks. A special photo section pays tribute to the equipment used and lost in the September 11 disaster.
Since the earliest years of city history, New York's firefighters have put their lives on the line to protect its citizens from fire. Written by experts on Fire Department history, this book documents the evolution of city firefighting from the earliest b
On September 11, the world was made heartbreakingly aware of the risks taken by the New York City Fire Department. But the New York Daily News has been documenting their bravery since 1919. Now, culled from their archive of over 6 million images, this book represents more than eighty years of the FDNY in action: fighting fires, at rest in the station house, training, mourning, protesting and proudly posing for history. A tribute to the dedication, heroism and humanity of the thousands serving in NY, this book is illustrated with 120 colour and b/w photos.
The story of firefighting in New York City is one of danger, tradition, pride, excitement, and tragedy. It is also the story of man's triumph over destructive forces. From the gaslight days of horse-drawn steam engines to the World Trade Center tragedy of 2001, the heroic men and women who make up the city's most dynamic public service have risked and often lost their lives in order to protect and serve the people of New York City. New York City Firefighting: 1901-2001 chronicles the proudest fire department in America. The proximity of buildings in the city streets and the construction materials made each fire especially dangerous, but determined firefighters never hesitated to battle the flames and rescue the victims. Later, facing unprecedented heights and unparalleled danger, firefighters in New York City were called upon to battle infernos in the first skyscrapers, often using the most rudimentary equipment and barely protected from the flames. In its most trying moments, the Fire Department of New York responded to the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in 1993 and 2001, dutifully rushing into the towers to save as many lives as possible and ultimately losing hundreds of their own.
Operated by the New York Board of Fire Underwriters, the New York Fire Patrol was organized in 1839 to patrol lower Manhattan. Their job was twofold: to discover fires and to prevent losses to insured properties. The New York Fire Patrol evolved, and in 1867, a state charter was granted to legally extinguish fires and conduct salvage operations throughout New York City. The New York Fire Patrol is the oldest paid fire service in the United States, and it also remains the last insurance-funded fire salvage corps in the country. Today, the fire patrol continues to serve the city of New York, responding to over 10,000 alarms each year alongside the Fire Department of New York.