Sark Fire and Rescue Service are the proud owners of some of the most unique Fire Fighting Appliances in the world. Yes we agree, they may look a little strange to our visitors, but they do indeed serve their purpose.
If you strip a “standard” fire appliance down all you have is a water tank, pump, lockers and necessary equipment for their anticipated use. Sark has exactly that, plus a little bit more as a “standard” appliance only carries 400 gallons of water, and we carry 600 gallons!!
Our appliances have off road capability, very rarely suffer from mechanical failure (another tractor can soon be attached), and the road speed of a “standard” appliance would be impractical on this small island.
Guernsey Fire and Rescue Service also have unique appliances as their vehicles are narrower than normal, to cope with Guernsey’s small lanes. Just goes to prove that most Fire Services have specific tools for the job!
The Sark Ambulance Service also use a specific tool for the job. Sark does not have a fleet of ambulances waiting to be used, so the ambulances are traditional ambulances modified to be tractor drawn. The inside remains untouched so except for the engine pulling, it is a normal ambulance. This once again gives maximum use as there are no break downs, off-roading is no problem (very common to drive into fields) and speed of a traditional ambulance would be impractical on Sark.
We hope this has given you an insight into our rather weird vehicles, and prove that they are not something out of “Toy Town” but are indeed well suited to this very unique island.
