Firefighter's portable water reservoir and method of making the same

A method of making a portable water reservoir vest for firefighters comprising the steps of

• providing an integral one piece first ply of water impervious flexible sheet material highly resistant to delamination, puncture and rupture and capable of being integrally welded to itself such that the weld likewise is highly resistant to delamination and rupture;
• providing a second ply of reinforced flexible sheet material having high tear and tensile strength, shape retention, and resistance to heat, flame and hydrostatic pressure;
• cutting each of said plys to a configuration comprising a matched pair of layouts for a vest;
• each layout including a back portion, a pair of front flap portions and mating shoulder portions at the upper edges of said back and front flap portions;
• each pair of layouts being of opposite hand an integrally joined together along a center line which defines the bottom boundary of the back and front flap portions of the vest;
• superimposing one ply of material on the other ply of material in alignment with one another;
• cutting aligned outlet openings through the two plys of material along their respective center lines at the bottom boundary of one of the aligned front flap portions thereof;
• cutting aligned filler openings through the back portions of the two plys of material in an area thereof that will comprise an upper outer wall portion of the back of the vest;
• securing an outlet fitting in the aligned outlet openings in sealed relationship with portions of both plys of material surrounding the respective outlet openings;
• securing a fill fitting in the aligned filler openings in sealed relationship with portions of both plys of material surrounding the respective filler openings;
• folding the first ply of material upon itself along the center line thereof and aligning the free edges of the two layouts thereof with one another;
• welding the free edges of the two layouts of the first ply to one another in a continuous wide weld;
• folding the second ply of material along the center line thereof to enclose the first ply within the second ply and aligning the free edges of the two layouts of the second ply with one another and the welded free edges of the first ply;
• mechanically attaching the free edges of both layouts of the second ply to the opposite sides of the welded edges of the first ply substantially continuously along and solely within the area of the continuous wide weld;
• folding the front flap portions of the vest over the back portion and bringing the mating shoulder portions thereof into alignment with one another;
• and
• mechanically attaching the mating shoulder portions together along and solely within the wide weld at the welded upper edges of the first ply.