Vintage Day At Station

Vintage fire engines, live demonstrations and fire engine rides were just three of the attractions at the super open day.

The station was buzzing with visitors and children, who were clearly enjoying the multitude of activities going on.

But perhaps the highlight of the day was a visit from 100-year-old Owen Cole, who ran Littlehampton Fire Station during the war years.

He was delighted to be there and was presented with a helmet, bearing 30 signatures of fire fighters stationed at Littlehampton and senior personel visiting on Saturday.

Owen said: "On such a day as this, it is grand to be back here at the open day, where people can come and see what goes on here."

He brought along pictures taken during his command in the town to show the current serving fire crews, who agreed with him that things had certainly changed.

He was given a guided tour by Littlehampton Fire Station commander Trevor Worsfold, who was very pleased with how the day had gone.

"He was a very interesting person, he gave up an opportunity to be at Leigh-On-Sea to be here and we felt really honoured."

Earlier on in the day, the Littlehampton Carnival Queen and Princesses got more than they bargained for when they visited the open day.

They weren't expecting to get wet and were in for a shock when firefighters picked them up and dunked them in the water carrier dam.

But it was all good fun and the day raised more than 1,700 for the Fire Service National Benevolent Fund, a cause Trevor feels very strongly about.

"I am really pleased that we made money for this worthwhile cause which does so much work for injured firefighters."

For more pictures, see the Gazette, July 18.