Doheny Memorial Library, Los Angeles, CA 90089-0189 Public Domain. Release under the CC BY Attribution license--http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/--Credit both “University of Southern California. Libraries” and “California Historical Society” as the source. Digitally reproduced by the USC Digital Library; From the California Historical Society Collection at the University of Southern California Send requests to address or e-mail given USC Libraries Special Collections specol@usc.edu
Description
Photograph of a Public Works Department Sewer Maintenance Division truck used for explosive gas survey, ca.1938. At center, a man in a blazer jacket can be seen standing inside a small, striped van. In the background, a brick building with a line of square windows can be seen. An automobiles can be seen at left. Additional information: The photograph features a "route truck" used by the Public Works Department Sewer Maintenance Division for testing and reporting explosive gas conditions in sewers. The truck carried a two-person crew consisting of a driver and a tester. The truck also carried a combustible gas testing device powered by a 6 volt battery and actuated by a vacuum from the truck engine. The device could detect gasoline vapor, natural gas and combustibility. The crew could test from 300 to 500 manholes daily. The device used a long copper tube (probe) that was inserted through the pick hole of a manhole cover to "sniff" for explosive gases. Tests were made by driving up to a manhole and simply inserting the probe to draw a sample of the manhole atmosphere. If explosive conditions were detected, they were immediately reported for remediation. The man in the blazer standing in the van appears to be Mr. Alvin Appel, an employee of the Sewer Maintenance Division.
Type
image
Format
1 photograph : photoprint, b&w 13 x 18 cm. photographic prints photographs
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