1833 fire insurance companies in London merged to form The London Fire Company Establishment. Steam-powered apparatuses were first introduced in the 1850s, allowing a greater quantity of water to be directed onto a fire; in the early 1930s they were superseded by versions powered by an internal combustion engine. In World War II the Auxiliary Fire Service, and later the National Fire Service, were established to supplement local fire services. Before 1938, there was no countrywide standard for firefighting terms, procedures, ranks, or equipment (such as hose couplings). In the month of August in 1939 with war looking very possible the Fire Service's act of 1938 came into effect. This unified Great Britain's fire service and prepared them for the German war machine. During the London Blitz, 700 fire men and 20 fire women , as known during the time period died as a result of heavy bombing, 91 of these perished at the same time defending London. By the end of the London Blitz, 327 firefighters had lost their lives. Following the war, leaps and bounds came to the fire service striving into the modern era. This included every firefighter being trained with the Mark 4 proto set and reverting to compressed cork helmets. Firefighting improved even more with the introduction of the Dennis fire appliances that remain iconic in the UK to this day. Sadly, despite the introduction of more advanced firefighting strategies, tactics, and equipment to British firefighting following the blitz, there have been nearly 300 firefighters killed. United States In January 1608, a fire destroyed many colonists' provisions and lodgings in Jamestown, Virginia. By the mid-1600s, Boston, New Amsterdam (later New York City), and Philadelphia were all plagued by fires, and volunteer fire brigades began to form. In 1736, Benjamin Franklin founded the Union Fire Company in Philadelphia, which became the standard for volunteer fire organizations. These firefighters had two critical tools: salvage bags and so-called bed keys. Salvage bags were used to quickly collect and save valuables, and bed keys were used to separate the wooden frame of a bed (often the most valuable item in a home at the time) into pieces for safe and rapid removal from the fire. The first American attempt at fire insurance failed after a large fire in Charlestown, Massachusetts in 1736. Later in 1740, Benjamin Franklin organized the Philadelphia Contributionship to provide fire insurance, which was more successful.