Submitted by SWFBU on
Fire Brigades Union press release
Friday 13 February 2014
For immediate distribution
Firefighters’ union leader visits south west fire and rescue workers struggling without equipment
The general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union, Matt Wrack, will visit firefighters combatting floods in the South West of England today (Friday 14 February 2014).
His visit will start at Bridgwater Fire Station before seeing firefighters at work and the flooding command centre.
Wrack said: “Wherever there’s a flood firefighters are doing a fantastic job helping to keep people safe and reduce the damage done to local communities.
“But our members are reporting that cuts to fire and rescue services are making it very difficult to cope with the demands of such extreme weather.
“Shortages of both people and equipment are proving real problems, with some fire services refusing requests to send equipment elsewhere in case it is needed in their own areas.
“Despite incredible claims that money is no object, fire and rescue services urgently need more resources to cope with such challenging conditions.”
The FBU also said that the military involved in the flood efforts did not have enough dry suits, and that in some cases local fire and rescue services had been asked to lend them theirs. This general lack of suitable safety equipment has been raised by the union for several years.
Ends
To arrange an interview or for more details, please contact the press office on 02084 811 505 (will divert) or press@fbu.org.uk.
Notes
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3. High res photos of spokespeople and other images that may be useful editorially are available at http://bit.ly/FBUphoto
