Merseyside firefighters to protest ‘dangerous’ policy

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The Fire Brigades Union says the proposal is ‘unacceptable’.

Firefighters are set to protest ‘unacceptable’ plans to reduce crew sizes to ‘dangerous’ levels.

Members of the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) will gather outside a Merseyside Fire Authority meeting in Bootle today (June 26) ahead of a vote on the new policy which could see crews of three respond to ‘non-life’ risk incidents.

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The proposal is part of the fire authority’s Community Risk Management Plan but the FBU says a minimum number of five firefighters is ‘needed to respond to incidents safely and professionally’. Matt Wrack, the union’s general secretary says ‘sending firefighters out in crews of three is dangerous and unacceptable’, adding: “We stand in solidarity with all FBU members in Merseyside as they fight for public and firefighter safety. We need to be absolutely clear to the councillors on the fire authority: we will not accept this dangerous policy and it must be withdrawn immediately. “ 

Ian Hibbert, Merseyside FBU brigade secretary added: “A crew of just three firefighters is not equipped to safely enter a burning building. Firefighters are calling on all members of Merseyside Fire Authority to vote against a policy that will put lives on the line. 

Members of the Merseyside Fire and Rescue service.Members of the Merseyside Fire and Rescue service.
Members of the Merseyside Fire and Rescue service. | MFRS

“A fire that has been reported as non-life threatening can quickly escalate and spread. When people call the fire service, they expect a crew to arrive who can act immediately and save lives. With a crew of three, firefighters would have to wait outside for back up, when every second counts.”

The Fire Brigades Union has also voiced opposition to the CRMP outlining the removal of watch managers from fire engines and reintroducing downgraded ‘small fires units’, which the union argues will put firefighters at greater risk. FBU representatives will address the fire authority meeting at Merseyside Fire & Rescue Service’s headquarter today, calling on all members of the fire authority to vote against the proposals. 

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A Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service spokesperson said: ‘It is misleading to the public to suggest that the Service intends to respond to house fires and other such life risk incidents with three firefighters.

“This is absolutely not the case – our plan clearly states that we WILL NOT send frontline fire engines with three firefighters to life risk incidents. It goes on to say our response model will remain as previously detailed in our 2021/24 Integrated Risk Management Plan.

“We have been clear throughout the consultation process however, that should a firefighter become unavailable due to last minute sickness or emergency leave we will keep that fire engine available for low level incidents - redefining it as a small incident unit until we have moved/detached staff into the station to enable it to be deployed to life risk incidents again.

“What we are proposing actually protects our ‘life risk’ response because it avoids sending a frontline fire engine with four or five firefighters from a neighbouring area to deal with a low-level incident such as a person locked out or to gain entry for the ambulance service - which would leave two station areas without a frontline fire engine with which to respond should a life risk incident occur - this is totally unacceptable and avoidable, and despite the Service adjusting its resources accordingly it would undoubtedly lead to a slower response to ‘life risk’ incidents – where seconds can cost lives.’

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