Understanding Air Brakes on Fire Apparatus

摘要

On a cool, crisp january afternoon in a large city in the Northeast, a ladder company responded to a medical call for a victim who was having difficulty breathing. The victim's location was a building at the top of a rather steep (13-percent grade) hill. While the crew was attending to the patient, the chauffer turned the two-axle, 49,000-pound ladder truck around and was prepared to leave the scene as soon as they were relieved.