What was your first?

Turd Ferguson

Member
Jul 3, 2011
2,250
Sumner, Wa
Just an idle curiosity, what was the first emergency vehicle you ever rode or worked in?

For me, it was 1995 Ford Crown Victoria for Enumclaw Police as an explorer. It was equipped with an Edge 9004AK, Fed Sig SW400SS switchbox. Motorola siren, dual Unity post mounts and a Setina PB 300. It also had 2 Motorola radios, I just don't remember the model.

At lease that's what I remember of it.
 

Sparky_911

Supporting Donor
May 15, 2013
2,648
Central Illinois
1985 GMC 1ton with enclosed body. Built as a construction/ work truck and converted to rescue/ems truck. Code 3 XL9K and Weldon par46 round flashers with a C3 siren. Had 2 vhf radios, one for county and one for hospital comms. My era was mids 90s. I have a bar that came off the matching engine we had at the time.
20201120_051442.jpg
 
Jun 18, 2013
3,709
PA
A very, tempermental.. putting that mildly mid 80's Ford 8000, It was in service up until 2018 when it was sold. The current owner lurks around here on elb I'll leave it upto him to post how cranky it still is.. lol
 

OSP959(R)

New Member
Mar 22, 2011
720
Ohio
01a81f3ae8702b77c10c01409d330774.jpg
When I started with the Geneva on The Lake Ohio Police Department in 1989, they had a Ford LTD Crown Vic just like this that they got from the state. Even came with the Yankee 911 lightbar because the OSHP had switched to Federal Signal Jetsonics. GOTL simply added their logo to the door.

You could hear the rotators turning, and in the winter time the drivers side would occasionally stop. Rolling down the window and smaking the bar would get it going again.

They also had a Plymouth Gran Fury with a Federal Signal Twinsonic.

Screenshot_20201122-005014_Gallery.jpg

Soon after I got there they got this Chevy Caprice. Code 3 MX7000 with intersection sweeps, VCon siren, double flash alternating wig-wag headlights, push bumper, and bars over the back side windows. Loved this car.

The following year I left and became a State Trooper, but that Caprice remains my all time favorite patrol car.

Funny story......

I took it to Geneva State Park to take that picture. The ground was softer than I thought, and I almost got it stuck trying to get it out of there. Left a muddy tire track trail leaving the park. Took it straight back to the station and washed it. Park Rangers probably wondered what a-hole drove on the grass. Damn 21 year old rookies!

I never got one stuck in the median as a Trooper though. Just hit it fast enough to slide out the other side. LOL.
 

RyanZ71

Member
Jun 14, 2011
1,001
Denver, Colorado
Also the hubcaps were unique for 1986 as well. I kinda liked the look of the 1986 ones instead of the frisbee style that stayed with the Caprice up until 1994 when they went to center caps instead- when I think they got tired of all the complaints of those frisbee's flying off everytime the car hit a pot hole <evil grin> My department had several storage bins full of hubcaps taken off of decommissioned cars because of this. <evil grin>
 

Nolines

Member
Apr 5, 2018
1,678
Margate, FL
Also the hubcaps were unique for 1986 as well. I kinda liked the look of the 1986 ones instead of the frisbee style that stayed with the Caprice up until 1994 when they went to center caps instead- when I think they got tired of all the complaints of those frisbee's flying off everytime the car hit a pot hole <evil grin> My department had several storage bins full of hubcaps taken off of decommissioned cars because of this. <evil grin>
What they couldn't sell them as momentos to fans, have a piece from your local police! Woo I rhymed!
 

RyanZ71

Member
Jun 14, 2011
1,001
Denver, Colorado
lol. I had a 93 Caprice 9C1 ex-Colorado State Patrol car. I remember driving it over some rail road tracks and one of those hub caps came off and went flying and bouncing right into the garage of an auto repair facility. I didn't have the guts to go back and ask for it. Just watched it in my rear view mirror. Got me some nice custom rims for the car after that.
 

JazzDad

Member
Aug 5, 2011
5,165
USA
Ever rode in? Probably a mid-60s Plymouth Grand Fury. For as many rides as I got, you'd think the PD was my taxi service.
 
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NPS Ranger

Member
May 21, 2010
1,988
Penn's Woods
I guess my first emergency vehicle was a 60's - 70's Miller-Meteor Cadillac ambulance where I had "volunteered" to be a victim for a local disaster drill. My leg was all moulaged up with a gory penetrating fracture and I kept holding it up to the side window to gross out anyone watching, as we ran L&S to the hospital.

Video link

Current rig
 

Turd Ferguson

Member
Jul 3, 2011
2,250
Sumner, Wa
Ever rode in? Probably a mid-60s Plymouth Grand Fury. For as many rides as I got, you'd think the PD was my taxi service.

Really? I figured it would be something like this...3-horse-team-pulls-steam-powered-pumper.jpg
 
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Da-Sarge

Member
Feb 27, 2020
393
Canada
My first emergency vehicle was a 1996 international crew cab pumper with a federal signal vector 5 pod in red and white, federalsignal strobe light heads (800 or 900 sized) federalsignal pa300 siren and a dual tone air horn was a pretty good rig for the small department we were fun times town has since amalgamated into the nahberimg town and our department was desolved
 

John Hearne

Member
May 27, 2010
346
Pontotoc County, MS
First vehicle I drove code in was a mil surp Dodge pickup that had been converted into a brush truck. Fed Sig light bar on top. Aerodynic exterior but Twinsonic guts.

First LE sedan was a Dodge with Smith & Wesson on top.
 

AJ3814

Member
Mar 13, 2015
689
Central Louisiana
First ride? 1980 (ish) Plymouth Fury or Ford LTD (Dad was Houston PD). First assigned? Late ‘90’s CV, as a rookie in 2003/2004. And yes, as a kid my job was to reach out and smack the lightbar in the winter.... old Yankee Dietz, S&W, Aero-Dynic, or Jet Sonics. HPD had all of those 4 when I was a kid.... but the JS was the “new cool” flash pattern.
 
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May 31, 2010
1,013
Aurora, Coloado
Mid 80's Dodge Diplomat purchased used from Ft Lauderdale PD by what was the Parkland Public Safety department, Parkland, Florida. This was well before the Parkland city council contracted with BSO for LE activities and I believe Coral Springs Fire Department for fire services.

I was a Public Safety Explorer 1987 - 1992. This is where my fascination, hobby and side hustle of today started with EV lighting. 30 plus years of proud lightbar nerdery!!!!

Could not find a pic of any vehicles from then, but here is a agency shoulder patch.

s-l640.jpg
 
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Nolines

Member
Apr 5, 2018
1,678
Margate, FL
Ahh yes back in the days of PHO ( you saw one of those stickers and never pulled them over ( Parkland Home Owner )) anyone without one was fair game!!
 
May 31, 2010
1,013
Aurora, Coloado
I would love to say you are wrong in that comment... But I can't!

PHO, back when it meant more that Chinese Noodles! LOL
 
May 31, 2010
1,013
Aurora, Coloado
My bad... Vietnamese Noodle Soup.
 

RyanZ71

Member
Jun 14, 2011
1,001
Denver, Colorado
Mid 80's Dodge Diplomat purchased used from Ft Lauderdale PD by what was the Parkland Public Safety department, Parkland, Florida. This was well before the Parkland city council contracted with BSO for LE activities and I believe Coral Springs Fire Department for fire services.

I was a Public Safety Explorer 1987 - 1992. This is where my fascination, hobby and side hustle of today started with EV lighting. 30 plus years of proud lightbar nerdery!!!!

Could not find a pic of any vehicles from then, but here is a agency shoulder patch.
Public Safety Explorer as in Boy Scouts Law Enforcement Explorer Program?
I was an LE Explorer at my Sheriff's office from 92-96. Some of the best years of my life, learned to love LE and learned a TON of other stuff. It also kept me out of trouble in many ways (I still got into trouble) and got me a cool job working as a Sheriff's Office Fleet Services tech/patrol division assistant so I got to drive lots of LE vehicles marked and unmarked and other things <evil grin> Those were great days.

Mid 80's Dodge Diplomat purchased used from Ft Lauderdale PD by what was the Parkland Public Safety department, Parkland, Florida. This was well before the Parkland city council contracted with BSO for LE activities and I believe Coral Springs Fire Department for fire services.

I was a Public Safety Explorer 1987 - 1992. This is where my fascination, hobby and side hustle of today started with EV lighting. 30 plus years of proud lightbar nerdery!!!!

Could not find a pic of any vehicles from then, but here is a agency shoulder patch.

Well here ya go. A brown (or gold?) Dodge Diplomat, mid-80s vintage Ft. Lauderdale.
dodge-diplomat-1983-9.jpg
 
May 31, 2010
1,013
Aurora, Coloado
Yep, there ya go. Guessing we had them painted for our agency as when I was in them, they were white. And yes, Explorer program sanctioned by the Boy Scouts.
 

Nolines

Member
Apr 5, 2018
1,678
Margate, FL
Hmmm brings me back to when my dad was a reserve police sergeant and they had the white diplomats with a single green rotator on the he roof for the city of sunrise golf village ( now city of sunrise ). But after that I worked at powell ford in ft Lauderdale in the fleet dept and my initials are on a lot of old police LTDs and LTD II's and trucks and FPL vehicles before the stripes and lights and equipment went on them. Ahhh those were the days.
 

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