RUSSIAN FIRE CHIEF IS STRIKING FIGURE (Jul, 1931)

RUSSIAN FIRE CHIEF IS STRIKING FIGURE

What a Russian Soviet fire chief looks like when he goes into action is revealed in this unusual photograph. It was snapped in a railroad yard by a photographer who arrived on the scene just as the chief was signaling his men to bring up their apparatus.

Ready for any emergency is this striking figure, as his costume indicates. An auto horn at his side and signal flgs aid him to give orders to the brigade he commands. This is necessary because vocal instructions are out of the question for him. A gas mask covers his entire face to shield him from smoke and noxious fumes. His helmet carries a spike to ward off or break up falling fragments of masonry and glass that would cause injury if they landed solidly.