FIRE SERVICE RESCUES PROJECTS COORDINATOR
A cautionary tale from Derek Perry....

(Above) Chris Wright of TCC with Nicky Scaplehore (admin) and Shaun Duggan (vehicle engineering supervisor) of Crownhill fire station, and (below) the adjustable light they fitted inside the ambulance.

few weeks ago I decided to try and fix a problem with the emergency lights on the front of the Landrover ambulance. The problem is one we have had since the ambulance had been donated to us. I had noticed a couple of wires not attached to anything, and thought this was the cause of the problem. Having recently had a similar problem with the electrics on my own car, I felt confident enough to have a go, and fix the lights myself.

As you will read as the story develops, this was not one of my better ideas. By the time I had finished trying to fix the front two flashing lights, not only were they still not working, but now we had no flashing lights on top or siren working either. After a few more attempts I managed to short all of the electrics and drain the battery as well. By now I had decided I had caused enough damage for one day, and that it might be wiser (as the hole I was digging myself into was getting deeper and deeper) to try to find someone who would be more qualified when it came to vehicle electrics.

Two or three days later I bumped into an old friend of mine Tim Smith who just happens to be an officer in the Tavistock fire service. When I explained what I had done to the ambulance he said he might know of a way of getting help for us. Within the hour Tim had telephoned to say that the fire brigade mechanics were willing to help. And as you can see from the photographs they were true to their word, and not only did they fix all the electrics for us, they also fitted a special adjustable light inside as well.

o a big thank you to the mechanics and staff at the Crownhill fire station in Plymouth for rescuing our voluntary projects coordinator out of a deep, deep hole he had managed to get himself into.

Derek