The Old Bell

 I hear of many old fire stations that are haunted. The one I am a member of is no exception. When I was a young "proby"I used to spend many nights up at the fire house studying all the equipment so I could pass my tests to get certified on the different engines and trucks. The story I always heard about was that the bell on our antique engine would ring by itself. Our antique engine is known as Old Mom. She's a 1928 American La France 1000 gpm pumper. It didn't take long for me to hear the bell ring. I would run out into the engine bay to see if someone was there. No one was ever there. I'd search in and around and even under the trucks but nobody was ever there. 

One night my girlfriend was with me and she was sitting on the back of Engine 4 facing Old Mom. We used to ride the back step back then so there was a large step on E4 that was convenient for sitting when you were bored waiting for your boyfriend to finish studying. Suddenly she spoke up and said "Hey there was a guy sitting on Old Mom but now he's gone." I asked her to describe him. She described a member who was an older member who was a past chief. The unusual thing was that he had pass away about a week earlier. 

I wonder if the stories of the bell ringing over the years was all the past chiefs and firefighters that have passed on and are still riding those engines on the other side. I know if there's medics and firefighters on the other side I'll still be riding too...... I hope anyway!