Nation & World

<< Previous   of   Next >> Los Angeles Times  (click to enlarge) Tom Bramell, former deputy chief of the Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department in Livermore, Calif., admires the four-watt bulb that has been burning since 1901.   ADVERTISEMENT   Related Stories • Ice cream and doughnuts 5/7/08   CONTACT THE HERALD Do you have a news tip? newstips@heraldnet.com | 425.339.3400   Published: Wednesday, May 7, 2008 107 years and counting for firehouse light bulb By John M. Glionna Los Angeles Times LIVERMORE, Calif. -- Five years after his retirement, ex-firefighter Tom Bramell still likes to visit Station No. 6 for old times' sake, whistling in amazement at all the changes -- the strange faces and slick high-tech engines. But one thing remains exactly the same, and it's what Bramell misses the most about his firefighting days. The sturdy little object hangs from the ceiling in the firehouse's engine bay, emitting its familiar faint orange glow. He calls it the long-lived light bulb of Livermore. At 107 years and counting, the low-watt wonder with the curlicue carbon filament has been named the planet's longest continuously burning bulb by both Guinness World Records and Ripley's Believe It Or Not. As objet d'art and enduring symbol of American reliability and ingenuity, it has been lauded by senators and presidents. It boasts a Web site -- www.centennialbulb.org, drawing 1 million hits a year -- a historical society and even a webcam that allows curious fans to check on it 24 hours a day. The Livermore lightbulb, you see, never gets turned off, which many people suspect is the secret to its longevity. Hanging 18 feet above the floor at the end of a black cloth-covered cord, the little light with the filament the width of a No. 2 pencil is unprotected by any lampshade. Firefighters won't even dust it. Touch it, jokes one captain, and, "You get your fingers chopped off." They guard their light with a surge protector and have a diesel generator and a battery as backups. To them, the bulb is the embodiment of their always-on-duty ethic. Livermore's bulb has burned for nearly 1 million hours. Even now, in its old age, Bramell will stack it against any New Age fluorescent, halogen or high-pressure sodium bulb out there. "I thought that for sure it was going to go out 35 years ago, but it fooled me. It fooled everyone," said the onetime deputy chief. Bramell said there are numerous theories on the bulb's longevity. "Most people just consider it a freak of engineering," he said. "But I believe the bulb has stayed alive so many years because the makers gave it a perfect seal, so no air gets inside the bulb to help disintegrate the carbon filament. This bulb operates in a vacuum and it doesn't burn hot. That's the secret." In 1901, when the tiny bulb was first screwed into place inside a hose cart house, it cast its light on a simpler era. Back then, horse-pulled carts carried water to fires. The bulb burned day and night, hanging at eye level from a 20-foot cord. Its job: to break the darkness so firefighters responding to calls wouldn't have to fumble to light the wicks of their kerosene lanterns. Manufactured by the Shelby Electric Co. of Shelby, Ohio, the bulb soon outlived its maker, which closed in 1914. It didn't always receive kid-glove treatment. Climbing atop their engines, firefighters returning from World War II and Korea often would give the bulb a playful swat for good luck. The next generation -- the Vietnam veterans and the younger kids -- used it as a target for Nerf basketball practice. Then, in 1972, a local reporter checked records and interviewed old-timers to trace its history. Firefighters suddenly realized they had a treasure. "The good-luck slaps and target practice stopped," Bramell recalls. "We figured, 'Wow, maybe we should take care of this bulb.'" In July 1976, Livermore held its collective breath when it moved the bulb a short two miles from the old Fire Department headquarters to Station No. 6. There was a police escort -- sirens blaring, lights flashing. Most nervous was the city electrician, faced with the delicate task of actually handling the bulb. For the trip, he built a wooden bulb box lined with cotton, Bramell said. They moved the bulb, socket and all, cutting the cord to 4 feet. At the new site, as dozens looked on, the electrician made the connection and said a prayer. Nothing happened. "There was a gasp," Bramell said. "Folks said, 'What on earth have we done?' Then the electrician jiggled a switch and the bulb came on. And it's stayed on ever since." In all, the bulb was out for 22 minutes -- a short period, the Ripley's folks say, that does not mar its continuous-use record. When the bulb turned 100 in 2001, Livermore officials threw a birthday party that drew 600 celebrators. Now they look forward to a 200th birthday bash. "You want that light on," said Deputy Fire Chief Jeff Zolfarelli, the new bulb keeper. "As long as it doesn't go out on your watch. Nobody wants to be onboard when that happens."

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