I Was a London Firefighter:Fire Brigade Stories - Softcover

David C. Pike

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1528918002 ISBN 13: 9781528918008

Publisher: Austin Macauley Publishers, 2018

Synopsis

What is a firefighter? They are the person next door... They are like you and me with warts and worries and unfulfilled dreams. Yet they stand taller than most of us. The latest book from author and retired fireman David Pike, I Was a London Firefighter is an anthology of factual narratives and fictional tales loosely based around the personal experiences of individual members of the London Fire Brigade. Ranging from the mid-19th century to the present day, the book includes direct reminiscences by former firefighters alongside descriptions of key historical figures like Massey Shaw, Sidney Gamble and Joe Milner. It takes in such subjects as the IRA's 20-year bombing campaign in London and the changing status of female firefighters. Running through the book is a series of gripping historical narratives subtitled 'Yesteryear's Fires', depicting the heroic professionalism of firefighters confronted by truly harrowing disasters. Some of these remain all-too-familiar, such as the King's Cross fire of 1987 which claimed the lives of 31 people; others, no less terrible, have faded into distant memory. The book ends with a fresh and compelling description of a horrifying tragedy that no one can have forgotten: 2017's Grenfell Tower fire. I Was a London Firefighter shares with David's previous works - Beyond the Flames, London Firefighters and Fire-Floats and Fireboats - a careful and comprehensive approach to historical research, an eye for striking and unusual narrative details and an understated humour. Above all, it shows an unwavering appreciation of and empathy for the concerns and drives of the ordinary firefighter, born of David's own experiences as a fireman.

About this title

About the Author:

Joining the London Fire Brigade as a cadet at the tender age of sixteen, David Pike was destined to become very much an operational firefighter. Awarded the Queen's Commendation for Brave Conduct as a young fireman, he rose steadily through the ranks during his thirty-plus years' service within the LFB. He commanded one of London's busiest and most challenging fire stations, Brixton. Heavily committed to raising monies for fire service charities, he rowed himself into The Guinness Book of Records whilst attracting many thousands of pounds through his, and his companions', endeavours. He retired in senior rank from the Brigade in 1996. David now lives in Devon. Austin Macauley publishes David's autobiography Beyond the Flames (2013), along with his previous histories of the London Fire Brigade, London Firefighters (2015) and Fire-Floats and Fireboats (2016).

About this edition

• Publisher: Austin Macauley Publishers
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 1528918002
• ISBN 13: 9781528918008
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 358