Fire service historian and author

Roger Mardon

www.romar.org.uk

© Copyright Roger Mardon

www.romar.org.uk

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The HydroSub 150 pump is the second in a range of four, the HydroSub 60, 150, 450 and 900. Shropshire Fire & Rescue Service has the 60 and 150 models.

The pump itself, Type HFS-3000, is driven hydraulically and is connected to the power unit by means of 60-metre hydraulic hoses wound on hydraulically-driven reels operated by cable remote control. The pump can thus be up to 60m horizontally or vertically away from its power source. It will pump salt water, chemical polluted water, mud and dirt, and operate from shallow water, minimum depth 0.3m, without risk of failure due to cavitation. It has a capacity of 3,500 l/min at 10 bar pressure and 2,500 l/min at 13 bar pressure. The New Dimension units are provided with an optional Hi-flow kit enabling them to pump 8,000 l/min at 2.5 bar

The diesel-hydraulic power unit is driven by a Volvo TAD620VE 6-cylinder turbo-diesel engine.

Each prime mover carries one Duo container, which is a demountable platform designed to carry two HydroSub 150 pump units, or two hose boxes, or one of each. The DC6500 model selected for the New Dimension pumping sets has a double cabinet at the front end providing compartments, with access from doors on each side, for portable water supply equipment. A top compartment houses a hose recovery unit and allows recovery operation from either side.

The hose boxes each carry 1,000m of flaked and coupled 150mm hose. Used with HFS portable water supply equipment, this large diameter hose can be used to create networks of thousands of metres.

The HRU-150 hose recovery unit can pick up 1km of large diameter hose in 30 minutes as the vehicle is driven slowly forward alongside the hose. The unit is driven from the prime mover’s PTO-hydraulic transmission by means of a connection from the hook-lift system. Electronic eye sensors recognise the need to open and close the pressure rollers as hose couplings approach and pass through the unit. Water is drained from the hose as it is recovered and it is then flaked and laid flat in the hose box by two firefighters as the vehicle moves along.

A considerable amount of hardware (gate valves, Y-pieces, etc) has also been purchased and some pieces were changed from the standard design especially for the UK government.

The composition of the New Dimension pumping sets provides for one Duo demountable container to carry a pump, one hose recovery unit and one hose box, while the second container carries one hose recovery unit and two hose boxes. One prime mover is issued with each HVPU, i.e. one PM for each two Duo containers.

High volume pumping units have been used at serious fires, notably the Buncefield oil depot explosion and fire in Hertfordshire on 11 December 2005, and in major flooding incidents such as occurred in Carlisle in January 2005. Nine high volume pumps were then deployed from the Fire Service College at Moreton-in-Marsh and used to pump out the main electricity sub-station, the sewage station and a flooded underpass in Carlisle. Further pictures of this incident can be seen on the delta-64 web site and thanks are extended to the owner of that site for allowing some of his images to be shown on this page. More recent incidents of note include the South Yorkshire floods in June/July 2007 and the floods in Gloucestershire and Worcestershire at the end of July.

Delivery of the high volume pumping units was completed in 2006. 48 units are deployed on a risk assessed basis as shown in the following table and two are kept as strategic reserves.  

The contract for the supply of high volume pumping units (HVPUs) was awarded to Kuiken Hytrans b.v. of Lemmer, Netherlands. This company had already provided Shropshire Fire & Rescue Service with two of its HydroSub pumps. The Government has bought 50 Hytrans Fire System (HFS) pumping sets.

Each pumping set comprises

• One HydroSub 150 pump unit, consisting of a diesel-hydraulic power unit and portable floating submersible pump
• Three hose boxes, each containing 1km of 150mm (6in) hose
• Two hose recovery units
• Two 6.5m Duo containers with double equipment cabinet

The HFS-3000 portable floating submersible pump

The HydroSub 150 diesel-hydraulic power unit in use during severe flooding in Carlisle in January 2005

For a layman's account of how an HVPU works in practice see High Volume Pumping Unit in Action.

New Dimension

Incident response units

Prime movers

High volume pumping units

Urban search & rescue units

Disrobe and re-robe modules

DIM units

Enhanced command support vehicles

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