March 22, 1977

Department builds new grass rig

       Members of the White River Township Volunteer Fire Department recently completed modifications to a recently acquired vehicle to be used as the group's grass rig.  The 1953 Willis M38 Jeep was received through a grant from the United States Forestry Service.  Upon acquisition, the Jeep was still in its "Army Dress" paint with "US Military" stenciled all over it.  The volunteers had the Jeep repainted and outfitted with various tools and other firefighting equipment.  The vehicle will be used to fight fires that occur in fields and off of paved roadways where the larger trucks are unable to access.

         In the leftmost photo below, Glenn Duthie (left foreground), Dale Wemmer (right foreground), Steve Shelton (left background), and Bob Werhman (right background) are attempting to restart the vehicle after it stalled.  The vehicle is dependable, but can be stubborn to start.  Occasionally, members will have to push, steer, jump in and pop the clutch to get it going.

  
(Click on a thumbnail to enlarge photo)

 

---