Do you still use this ladder ?

[E40FDNYL35]

...and what does your Department call this ladder ?

[E40FDNYL35]

[distchief60b]

We don't use it, but my old volunteer department had one on our 1952 ALF Ladder. I have always called it a "pompier ladder", but have also heard the term "scaling ladder" used too.

[E40FDNYL35]

You are correct...anyone still use them ???

Pompier ladders remained in service on apparatus for many years. The last rescue made using a pompier ladder was accomplished on December 15,1967. FDNY Firefighter Gene Dowling of Ladder Company Number Twenty-Five made this dramatic rescue. Firefighter Dowling responded to a fire in the Morgan Post Office. This fire went to five alarms. Dowling spotted three trapped postal employees at a window. Ladder Company Twenty Five quickly raised it's hundred foot aerial but it was one story sort of the terrified postal workers. Firefighter Dowling grabbed a pompier ladder and climbed the hundred foot aerial to the tip. The window was just above a large out cropping of decorative granite. Dowling, in a thirty mile per hour wind, raised the pompier ladder over his head and made his first attempt at placing the pompier into the windowsill, he missed, but held onto the ladder. Mustering all his strength he made a second attempt. The pompier ladder just cleared the granite and made it into the sill. Firefighter Dowling then climbed up the Pompeir ladder and one by one brought down all three postal workers. Firefighter Gene Dowling received the James Gordon Bennet medal for this rescue. Ironically the first and the last rescues made using the pompier ladder both resulted in the awarding of the James Gordon Bennet Medal.

The New York City Fire Department carried pompier ladders on their apparatus up until July 11, 1996 when they were officially placed out of service

[neildonahue]

A Firefighter's Story

When it came time to do the Pompier ladders, I knew that this was a do or die day. If you don’t do the pomps, you don’t graduate. It’s that simple

A Firefighters Story

http://www.ci.boston.ma.us/bfd/firefighters/firefighters_story.htm

[neildonahue]

Photos Yonkers Fire Department

Skills and Drill Day
Pompiers

http://www.yfd.org/skillsdrills.htm

[ADSNWFLD]

Only at the fire academy.

If you are in that situation 2 guys can use a roof ladder to do the same thing

[MFDExplorer51]

We call them Pompier Ladders. And no, we do not carry them on our rigs anymore.

[RescuHoppy7]

Never used them but we talked about them for about 10 minutes in my FF1 class

[Engine58]

ahh yes the pompier ladder. Something You'll never catch me climbing HAHA! They gave us an overview of what it is, how its used and its history. We had a retired FDNY FF as an instructor and the stories he told....good lord!!

[Neman13]

They are called pompier ladders and they have no practical purpose in today’s fire service. Except for maybe a confidence builder or a pot rack in the kitchen

[FireCapt1951retired]

We also called them pompiers.They still use them in the academy. The last time we carried them was back in the mid 70's. We trained on them extentsively when I came on the department all so many years ago. I actually enjoyed doing the evolutions with them. Other interesting ladder operations were splicing, and the church raise.

[jaybird210]

I thought that first picture looked like an aerial antenna for a TV!!



(P.S. I always knew them as pompier ladders, too, also.)

[PAVolunteer]

These guys still carry one on their tower. Although, I'm guessing not too many guys can remember the last time they used it.

Stay Safe

[TCFire]

I remember reading about Gene Dowling's rescue at the post office using the Pompier ladder. He described how he used the ladder off the aerial, on his first attempt he was on the pompier when the teeth started slipping away from the window sill, but he made it and got a better bite the second time. The Commissioner and Chief of Department were watching him the entire time from down below. Made the hair on the back on my neck stand straight up!! Talk about guts!