History and construction of the fire hose.
Early leather hoses leaked badly, and their sewn seams were prone to rupture under pressure. The first riveted leather hose was developed in 1808 in Philadelphia by a group of volunteer firefighters. The early leather hoses requires an extra heavy duty fire hose winder to hold the weight. Modern fire hose is very expensive (100 feet of 5-inch diameter hose costs nearly $1,000; each engine carries 1,000 feet of such hose). Driving over fire hose may damage it and jeopardize the safety of the crew attacking the fire; violators who drive over our fire hose will be cited. We must hold firm on this procedure.