Indian Pump

An Indian Pump is a simple fire fighting tool used for "wildland firefighting". It is part of the assigned camp equipment for each troop at Camp Horseshoe with each campsite being assigned at least one should any problem arise. During Horseshoe Inspection the grader checks that the Indian Pumps are filled and placed near the latrine and a pavilion.

The Indian Pump (or Indian Tank) consists of a backpack five gallon tank of water connected by a short hose to a hand pump. This piece of equipment allows quick, mobile, and directed fire fighting capabilities even when far from a water source. The pump is of course a limited tool that can only deal with small fires and only so long as there is enough water in the tank. It is, however, very capable as a first response tool to fight fire quickly and buy time for fire buckets to be brought up in order to completely douse the flames. During the Troop's water fight at Horseshoe, a staff member often uses the Indian Pump to continuously barrage the younger scouts and supplement the staff patrol's firepower.