Lizard News DECEMBER 2022
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Vintage engine a cause to smile By Matthew Farrell hristmas has come early for former Ōmokoroa Volunteer Fire Brigade chief John Luckman, with a trip down memory lane in the vintage V8 engine he once crewed. John is now living back in town after a few years in Te Ānau, where he retired and was well-known for crafting handmade wooden toys and furniture. Today’s chief Ian Blunt visited with driver Ross Leek and Jason McKie before John chose to take a trip to the boat ramp at the Esplanade, then a drive past the site of the original fire station where the old library is now located, and his old house on Kōwai Grove. Ross says there’s still a cartoon drawing on the wall of the current station, which depicts John running a few doors up the road to the old station not quite dressed. “Do you know how much we paid the Mount brigade for this truck? I think it might have been $50,” recalled John as they set off, with Jason keeping an eye on John and traffic behind.
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John asked Ross the area the brigade now covered, which is from Sargent Drive south of Katikati to Snodgrass Road in Te Puna. Years later the brigade was given one of five Bedford trucks imported from England by the government. “The pump was about the same weight as this truck and I was stuck with it. A couple of brigades wanted to buy our V8 for about $500, but I fought tooth and nail to keep it and here’s the result today. “We had several house fires and oven fires back then. Only the Goldstones fire was a big loss. Two trucks, a couple of runabouts, and farm equipment. We had no water access, only a couple of cattle troughs. It was terrible,” John remembers. Jason says the old V8 hasn’t had much use for a couple of years, but brigade members have decided to keep it. “It’s part of our history. Now we need to get out and use it more,” Jason says. “My thanks, Ian. I loved that. Thanks to everybody. It’s made my day. No, it’s made my week,” says John.