Nightime closure threat to 24-hour fire stations

Firefighters are expected to pack county hall tomorrow to show their opposition to plans drawn up to meet the county council's budget cutting strategy.

It will mean there will be no staffed stations in the county after 6pm and all fire and rescue emergency cover will be provided by staff responding from their homes.

The proposal has sparked alarm bells from the Fire Brigade Union (FBU) which says this will add a minimum of five minutes to appliances being mobilised to emergencies.

Firefighters at Falmouth said they are opposed to any form of reduction in cover for Falmouth and Penryn and that they are very unhappy about the proposals.

"Our feelings are that the station needs to be kept as a 24-hour station," said one firefighter who did not want to be identified. "It is important that the first appliance is going to be on scene within four minutes, whereas if you haven't got a watch here then it is going to take four or five minutes to get in and then four or five minutes travelling. If you have a life-threatening situation these minutes are very, very important. This station needs to be kept 24 hour and the cuts need to be elsewhere.

"You have to rely on people getting in and technology to alert the retained firefighters. There are a lot of unhappy people down here."

Falmouth mayor Roger Bonney said he was totally opposed to the proposal which would put lives at risk.

"It is a false economy as far as I can see. They are putting the whole county at risk. We are a national port and the gateway to England. This port is a vital service to the whole of Cornwall.

"We have the potential of a ship coming in on fire, or a terrorist attack, and if we have a hotel fire there is no way the service will meet the demands of that. There will be a serious loss of life."Penryn used to have its own fire station 12 to 13 years ago but it was closed after the town council was promised that 24 hour cover would continue to be provided from Falmouth.

Following a proposal from councillor Ted Wilkes at its meeting on Monday, Penryn town council is writing to county hall opposing the cutbacks.

"We want to send a very strong letter saying we do not back this decision and we want to keep it (the station) full time," said Mr Wilkes. "We lost our own station a number of years ago we don't want it to happen again."

The Liberal Democrat's own MP for Falmouth and Camborne, Julia Goldsworthy, says she is very concerned about the proposals.

"These reports are very concerning," she said. "The Camborne - Redruth area is the most densely populated in Cornwall and Falmouth has responsibilities which extend beyond the town to the docks and at sea.

"I am requesting an urgent meeting with the chief fire officer and executive member, Ken Yeo, for a formal explanation of these reports, "While I am aware of the huge budgetary pressures on the council as a result of Government underfunding, I intend to meet with the chief fire officer and executive member, Ken Yeo, for a formal explanation of these reports. Public safety must remain the prime consideration."

The Fire Brigades Union says in a statement that the proposal has not been based on a reduction of risk in these areas but on a reduction in cost.

"Communities will unequivocally be at a greater risk if these ill thought out and rushed plans are implemented," it said.

"Every firefighter knows that the risks to the public and to firefighters are increased if mobilisation times are increased to fires so these proposals fly in the face of common sense.

"The Fire Brigades Union cannot stand by and watch the service we deliver to the communities in which we live and work be decimated by these proposals and will therefore be launching our campaign to oppose these plans."

A panel of members from Cornwall county council will be meeting tomorrow to discuss the draft recommendations for Cornwall County Fire Brigade's Service Plan for 2007/2008. The plan needs to take into account the budget for the brigade.

A statement issued by Cornwall County Fire Brigade in response to the FBU said: "In 2005/2006 the brigade had to freeze the recruitment of whole time firefighters. The budget for 2007/08 and beyond does not allow for that freeze to be lifted. As a consequence the brigade has included a draft recommendation to change the status of Falmouth and Camborne fire stations to day crewed to accommodate the forecast forward budget. This will be fully debated at the meeting on Thursday.

"Following this meeting, and subject to any amendments made by members of the panel, public consultation on the proposals will begin."

Falmouth mayor Roger Bonney said he was totally opposed to the proposal which would put lives at risk.

"It is a false economy as far as I can see. They are putting the whole county at risk. We are a national port and the gateway to England. This port is a vital service to the whole of Cornwall.

"We have the potential of a ship coming in on fire, or a terrorist attack, and if we have a hotel fire there is no way the service will meet the demands of that. There will be a serious loss of life."