Love me tender... Firemen help stricken traction engine on its way
ASHBOURNE’S fire and rescue officers have stepped in to help a stricken vintage traction engine get on its way after it ran out of water in Park Road on Sunday.
Despite leaving home with 100 gallons in its tank with a further 400 gallons being towed in giant containers behind, the 89-year-old engine Alicia Rose ran out of water only two-thirds of the way into her journey.
Fortunately firefighters from Ashbourne’s retained station were on hand to top-up the Ransoms Simms and Jefferies machine with 500 gallons of water.
Chris Hutton, who bought the traction engine a year ago said: “We’re on our way from Tideswell to Klondyke Mill in Staffordshire - it’s about 35 miles.
“We’re meeting up with some fiends for a socially-distanced ‘steam-up.’
“She’s very thirsty and we’ve used more water than we thought.
“I don’t know how we’d have made the journey without the help of the fire service.
“I was so relieved to see the fire station doors open and the crew on standby.
“It’s not an everyday thing, but it’s almost as if they were waiting for a thirsty traction engine to turn up.”
All topped-up with water, and with traffic already building-up behind her, Alicia Rose steamed slowly off, to complete its journey.