Heritage Trust Fire Engine Does Porridge.

Heritage Trust Fire Engine Does Porridge.

In 2024, this World War Two  Austin K4 Wheeled Escape Carrier, which originally served in the Edinburgh area, was taken into the ownership of the Scottish Fire Brigades Heritage Trust from the Fire Museum in Weedon, Northamptonshire.

As part of this major restoration project, a working partnership has been established between the Heritage Trust and HMP Barlinnie staff. The Prison Service have, under the auspices of  Offenders’ Outcome Scheme, agreed to support us by managing the initial stages of the restoration project. The Heritage Trust will finance the materials required for this work. We are delighted to have established this unique partnership with HMP Barlinnie, and we are indebted to the staff for their commitment to supporting us by undertaking this work.

The appliance is currently residing at His Majesty’s pleasure in HMP Barlinnie. The logistics of moving the fire engine by low-loader from Port Glasgow Fire station to HMP Barlinnie having been undertaken by Robert McKenzie from Auto-Tec Recovery Port Glasgow, who transported  the vehicle free of charge. The Trust is grateful to Robert and his staff who have offered ongoing generous support to the Heritage Trust and the Greenock Fire Museum and Heritage Centre for more than 20 years.

We are currently at an advanced stage of planning on how the restoration work will be progressed. Watch this space for updates.