7 ms·

I'd be pissed to be his neighbor. The firetruck spews dirty exhaust, is unsafe if there are kids running around, and definitely is an eyesore. Even though the

I'd be pissed to be his neighbor. The firetruck spews dirty exhaust, is unsafe if there are kids running around, and definitely is an eyesore. Even though there's no HOA he is probably running afoul of city or county zoning rules...you shouldn't be able to park large work trucks in residential neighborhoods.

mikeash 14y ago
What makes the truck more unsafe around children than e.g. a Ford Explorer or similar?
- SoftwareMaven 14y ago
  If nothing else, the fact that it would attract children, whereas I've seen few kids who are interested in playing on (versus in) the Ford Explorer. It also would have far worse visibility than a Ford Explorer. That said, I don't think it is an argument for whether he should be "allowed" to have the truck or not. If there was evidence that people with large truck always hurt kids, perhaps; but I don't think that evidence exists.
  - mikeash 14y ago
    Attracting children is a good one I hadn't thought of. As for visibility, I think that probably cancels out with a responsible driver. The fact that it's harder to drive will engender additional caution, for probably no major net change in danger, assuming he can avoid getting so used to the thing that he gets sloppy.
  - newbie12 14y ago
    Of course should be allowed to own the truck, but I'd have a problem with him parking it visibly and operating it regularly in a residential neighborhood.
  - uogecko 14y ago
    These are good points - pollution, eye sore, blind spots, etc. I try to be really careful with it and be aware of my surroundings as much as possible. As far as the neighbors are concerned, I weighed purchasing the fire truck that I'd always wanted against possibly pissing off the neighbors. The rest of that story is history.
- rdouble 14y ago
  A ford explorer can stop on a dime. A fire truck cannot. A fire truck also has a blind spot equivalent to 3 ford explorers.
  - fnordfnordfnord 14y ago
    If the blind spot were really a child safety factor, then the sight of a UPS or FedEx truck would terrorize parents across the world. I'll also bet that his fire truck can stop better than you think, especially if he has left the ~500 gallon water tank empty.
    - newbie12 14y ago
      As a kid I watched a UPS truck run down my dog on a quiet residential street.
      - fnordfnordfnord 14y ago
        Sorry about your dog. A school bus got my cousins' dog under the same circumstances. The two of them had to helplessly watch the whole thing from the bus.
        thezach 14y ago
        better keep kids away from school buses, clearly dangerous /sarcasm
        HeyLaughingBoy 14y ago
        You'd be surprised to know how many kids are run over by school buses every year.
        epmatsw 14y ago
        Looks like about 15 per year. http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811165.pdf http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811165.pdf
- jacquesm 14y ago
  https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5433803 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5433803
thezach 14y ago
then watch your kids like a parent should
- JamisonM 14y ago
  I like living in a place where my kids can play in the front yard without non-stop surveillance. Every parent has had a kid run out of sight in the back yard, a store, or the mall. The idea that jerks like you say things like that every time something bad happens to someone's child really pisses me off.
  - Jach 14y ago
    I'll agree with you that "watch your kids 24/7" is unfeasible. But I did think of something that would get the same results in this case: teach your kids to respect the property of others. It always confused me that, for example, trampoline owners could get in trouble because local children, without the permission of the owner, came over to jump on it and fell off and broke a bone. The kids are at fault, and that reflects on their parents.
    - analog 14y ago
      To be fair a trampoline is pretty irresistible to a child. It's like leaving a big barrel of sweets unattended.
    - newbie12 14y ago
      This is long established common law. Just because it is your property, you cannot escape your obligation to mitigate obvious hazards, particularly where children are involved. So hanging a tree swing that is unsafe and snaps, injuring a child playing on it, still creates liability for you even though the child was trespassing.
      - thezach 14y ago
        Parental neglect is a well established law as well.
fnordfnordfnord 14y ago
>Even though there's no HOA he is probably running afoul of city or county zoning rules... Many days I can't find a good reason to appreciate living in the US. I'm glad that there are places to live where a guy can buy an old fire truck if it tickles his fancy. I'm also glad that there are ticky-tacky neighborhoods with HOA's in towns with strict zoning, so you and I won't have to be neighbors. I also can't think of a reason why I should fear for my children's safety if my neighbor had one of these in his driveway.
- newbie12 14y ago
  These trucks are huge and have blind spots...there's a reason you need a commercial driver's license to operate them in most states.
  - fnordfnordfnord 14y ago
    So you keep saying. What's the big deal about blind spots? So, he shouldn't reverse without a spotter, and he should be extra careful merging on the freeway. Looks like he has a circle-driveway so, he's got that covered. Seriously, this thing isn't any worse than a Class-A RV, a vehicle which, like it or not, requires no special driver license.
Gravityloss 14y ago
I'd be glad, wouldn't it be cool? Probably he also shows it to neighbours. And you could tell everyone "I live two houses from the firetruck".
- uogecko 14y ago
  I joke that their proximity to my firetruck should reduce the cost of their home owners insurance. They should be thanking me :)
ofacup 14y ago
won't they please think about the children!
steauengeglase 14y ago
It probably worried the neighbors up to the point where they realized there wasn't a fire. I can't imagine he'll end up driving it enough for that to be a problem. In 2 or 3 years (more like 6 months) he'll get tired of moving it around and paying for fuel. In the end the worst case scenario will end up being caught behind the guy as he heads out to some small town's Christmas parade so their real engines aren't being wasted driving Santa down Main St. For $1,500 he got a deal. It is worth at least that much in scrap.

mikeash 14y ago

What makes the truck more unsafe around children than e.g. a Ford Explorer or similar?

SoftwareMaven 14y ago
If nothing else, the fact that it would attract children, whereas I've seen few kids who are interested in playing on (versus in) the Ford Explorer. It also would have far worse visibility than a Ford Explorer. That said, I don't think it is an argument for whether he should be "allowed" to have the truck or not. If there was evidence that people with large truck always hurt kids, perhaps; but I don't think that evidence exists.
- mikeash 14y ago
  Attracting children is a good one I hadn't thought of. As for visibility, I think that probably cancels out with a responsible driver. The fact that it's harder to drive will engender additional caution, for probably no major net change in danger, assuming he can avoid getting so used to the thing that he gets sloppy.
- newbie12 14y ago
  Of course should be allowed to own the truck, but I'd have a problem with him parking it visibly and operating it regularly in a residential neighborhood.
- uogecko 14y ago
  These are good points - pollution, eye sore, blind spots, etc. I try to be really careful with it and be aware of my surroundings as much as possible. As far as the neighbors are concerned, I weighed purchasing the fire truck that I'd always wanted against possibly pissing off the neighbors. The rest of that story is history.
rdouble 14y ago
A ford explorer can stop on a dime. A fire truck cannot. A fire truck also has a blind spot equivalent to 3 ford explorers.
- fnordfnordfnord 14y ago
  If the blind spot were really a child safety factor, then the sight of a UPS or FedEx truck would terrorize parents across the world. I'll also bet that his fire truck can stop better than you think, especially if he has left the ~500 gallon water tank empty.
  - newbie12 14y ago
    As a kid I watched a UPS truck run down my dog on a quiet residential street.
    - fnordfnordfnord 14y ago
      Sorry about your dog. A school bus got my cousins' dog under the same circumstances. The two of them had to helplessly watch the whole thing from the bus.
      - thezach 14y ago
        better keep kids away from school buses, clearly dangerous /sarcasm
        HeyLaughingBoy 14y ago
        You'd be surprised to know how many kids are run over by school buses every year.
        epmatsw 14y ago
        Looks like about 15 per year. http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811165.pdf http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811165.pdf
jacquesm 14y ago
https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5433803 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=5433803

thezach 14y ago

then watch your kids like a parent should

JamisonM 14y ago
I like living in a place where my kids can play in the front yard without non-stop surveillance. Every parent has had a kid run out of sight in the back yard, a store, or the mall. The idea that jerks like you say things like that every time something bad happens to someone's child really pisses me off.
- Jach 14y ago
  I'll agree with you that "watch your kids 24/7" is unfeasible. But I did think of something that would get the same results in this case: teach your kids to respect the property of others. It always confused me that, for example, trampoline owners could get in trouble because local children, without the permission of the owner, came over to jump on it and fell off and broke a bone. The kids are at fault, and that reflects on their parents.
  - analog 14y ago
    To be fair a trampoline is pretty irresistible to a child. It's like leaving a big barrel of sweets unattended.
  - newbie12 14y ago
    This is long established common law. Just because it is your property, you cannot escape your obligation to mitigate obvious hazards, particularly where children are involved. So hanging a tree swing that is unsafe and snaps, injuring a child playing on it, still creates liability for you even though the child was trespassing.
    - thezach 14y ago
      Parental neglect is a well established law as well.

fnordfnordfnord 14y ago

>Even though there's no HOA he is probably running afoul of city or county zoning rules... Many days I can't find a good reason to appreciate living in the US. I'm glad that there are places to live where a guy can buy an old fire truck if it tickles his fancy. I'm also glad that there are ticky-tacky neighborhoods with HOA's in towns with strict zoning, so you and I won't have to be neighbors. I also can't think of a reason why I should fear for my children's safety if my neighbor had one of these in his driveway.

newbie12 14y ago
These trucks are huge and have blind spots...there's a reason you need a commercial driver's license to operate them in most states.
- fnordfnordfnord 14y ago
  So you keep saying. What's the big deal about blind spots? So, he shouldn't reverse without a spotter, and he should be extra careful merging on the freeway. Looks like he has a circle-driveway so, he's got that covered. Seriously, this thing isn't any worse than a Class-A RV, a vehicle which, like it or not, requires no special driver license.

Gravityloss 14y ago

I'd be glad, wouldn't it be cool? Probably he also shows it to neighbours. And you could tell everyone "I live two houses from the firetruck".

uogecko 14y ago
I joke that their proximity to my firetruck should reduce the cost of their home owners insurance. They should be thanking me :)

ofacup 14y ago

won't they please think about the children!

steauengeglase 14y ago

It probably worried the neighbors up to the point where they realized there wasn't a fire. I can't imagine he'll end up driving it enough for that to be a problem. In 2 or 3 years (more like 6 months) he'll get tired of moving it around and paying for fuel. In the end the worst case scenario will end up being caught behind the guy as he heads out to some small town's Christmas parade so their real engines aren't being wasted driving Santa down Main St. For $1,500 he got a deal. It is worth at least that much in scrap.