They turned out to be adaptable to fighting forest fires.  These flew out of Wetaskiwin, Alberta in the sixties and later.
<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.flickr.com/people/12448447@N06">gordon hunter</a> from Nanaimo, BC, Canada
<a rel="nofollow" class="external text" href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/12448447@N06/4702153483/">Grumman Avenger torpedo bombers</a>