New Britain herald., 1919-05-21


 To His Honor the Mayor, and Mem-
 bers of the Common Council, City of New Britain,
 Gentlemen:
 In conformity to the provisions of the city charter we beg leave to suo- init herewith the annual report or the fire department. It Is pleasure to report the Improvements made dur ing the past year and we appreciate the cordial cooperation on your part which have made them possible. The steps of progress have been lmpor- tant and we feel that better fire serV- ice may be expected.
 The units of fire protection have been materially increased in the tis- cal year 191S-19. The Maxim motor pump, which we were awaiting the delivery of when we submitted the last annual report to your honorable sbody, is now in service and the new Seagrave 75 foot aerial ladder truck, is also in commission.
 The Maxim pump was contracted for delivery, subject to meeting the requirements of an underwriters test. The result of the underwriters test. made by the underwriters represent atives, showed that the pump met the contract requirements as is shown in the following records:
 Required Gallons Gallons
 Showed hours' pumping 45O 458 30 minutes pumping ..220 245 30 minutes pumping ..1S0 1S0
 Tn making payment for the Maxim pump, the amount included the war. tax. Since then we have obtained a ruling that such motor apparatus is not subject to war tax and the cor poration counsel is now negotiating for the return of the S201 paid.
 The Sea graves ladder truck, deliv- cred in March has been accepted as having met the requirements of the contract. It was thoroughly tested before acceptance. The contract price of this apparatus was $13,405. In contracting for it provision was made so that we could utilize some of the eQuipm ent on the old aerial lad der truck, thereby reducing the price. The manufacturers stated that the contract price included the war tax, and in consideration of the ruling from the internal revenue depart ment, that such apparatus is not sub ject to tax the amount of the war tax about $400 was withheld when pay ment was made for the truck. The city's order for S12,69245 was drawn in payment
 This apparatus has been made more valuable. to the city by attach ing to it a ladder pipe, so that in case of emergency it will be service able as a water tower.
 It is now at the central headQuar- ters but the locating of it at No. fire, station is favored. From there it rwill be possible to make a better getaway"
 Your fire department will be made still more efficient in the line of equipment. The master mechanic is attaching chemical tank to the city service ladder truck, taking a chem ical tank from the hose wagon which was "stripped' before selling Frequently apparatus was called for chimney fires and sometimes more ladders than those carried on hose trucks were required, and necessi tated sending back for the ladder truck. This valuable addition has been accomplished at slight expense to the city.
 The fire department of the city is K completely motorized today
 Y Station Improvements.
 Living conditions for fremen while on duty were materially improved. The dormitory at the Central station was more than doubled in size. The improvement was much needed
 The alterations at No 2 fire station which have caused many favorable comments and have practically given 2he city a new station. The additional room required by reason of location of the city service ladder company there.
 The costs of the improvements ex- ceeded the original estimate of cost, principally on account of the increased cost of labor and material between the time when the appropriation was sought and when the work was done. Fire Prevention.
 While the fire prevention work in New Britain has been in progress for a few years it is since Captain Barnes has been in charge that results have been obtained and the records cover ing the past year are of interest. In- spections made, 1703 unsatisfactory conditions, 1925; persons affected by inspections, 24,682. Fire prevention inspections undoubtedly contributed to some extent in the reduction of the number of fires and fire losses m the past year. The following figures seem significant:
 Bell alarms, 1916-17, 59; 1917-1S, 76; 1918-19, 57.
 Call alarms, 1916-17, 15S; 1917-1S, fS6; 191S-19, 167.
 Losses, 1916-17, $67,S51; 1917-1s, s214,290: 1918-19, $74,26o.
 Property endangered, 1916-17. $1.- 655.779; 1917-18, $2,524,090; 191S-19, s1,660,525.
 In three fires alone this year the to- tal losses amounted to $54,500, which shows how effective the department S work has been.