But those two things obviously go together. Fires have always been a problem for those who build. We must have fire to keep warm, but how do you keep warm and safe at the same time. And if you yourself are quite safe with a fire in your house, what about your neighbor? If fire breaks out in their house, it could spread to yours. As cities grew, this was a very real concern.
Some of the worst disasters have been due to fires in cities. London burnt down and had to be rebuilt. San Francisco burnt down and had to be rebuilt. Chicago Burt down, supposedly because of a cow and a lamp. The city had to be rebuilt. Modern high rise flats have shown that they are disasters waiting to happen if a fire breaks out. And of course we can build with better, flame resistant materials, but fire remains a danger to all living in the city.
Which is why we for a very long time have had people willing to work at putting fires out. Where in the past it may have been a bucket brigade from the village, all villagers helping one another, it soon became a group of dedicated people willing to work hard to put any fire out. But how to bring the water to the fire?
This is where the firehose came into play. Amazingly, it was designed in Amsterdam at the end of the 17th century by Dutch painter and inventor, Jan Van der Heyden and his brother. The made a better design for a pump, but also designed the hose so that they could better reach the flames. The hoses were made of leather and sewn together like a boot leg.
Later improvements were made in the centuries to come, making firefighting easier and more efficient, though still very dangerous. These days we are all thankful for the men and women of the local fire brigade (like our brother-in-law) and for the materials that have been designed to better keep us all safe.
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