North Yorkshire’s Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner is set to face further scrutiny over plans to cut the number of night-time fire engines in Harrogate to just one.
Commissioner Zoë Metcalfe will face councillors at a special meeting of North Yorkshire County Council’s Harrogate and Knaresborough Area Constituency Committee next Thursday.
The plans, which are currently out to consultation, have already been criticised as “putting money before lives”.
The Fire Brigades Union also described the proposals as “seriously concerning”.
The plans would see Harrogate fire station continue to have two fire engines during the day, but just one between 10pm and 9am when fewer incidents usually occur.
The move would also mean some of the fire station’s 40 crew members are moved to different stations or roles.
Harrogate Fire Station on Skipton Road
A report to Thursday’s meeting said Harrogate is of a “predominantly low combined fire risk” and that this “does not warrant” two 24-hour fire engines.
Commissioner Metcalfe has also insisted the fire service would “continue to provide an immediate emergency response” during the night.
Yet concerns remain that the move would increase response times if multiple emergencies occur during late hours and back-up vehicles have to travel further from outside of Harrogate.
Steve Howley, secretary of the North Yorkshire Fire Brigades Union, previously urged the public to reject the proposals which he said would “put lives at risk.” He said:
“The Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner needs to fight for the correct funding from government, not simply mask underfunding by slashing services and providing the public of North Yorkshire with a second-rate emergency response service.”
Save £1.5m a year
Ms Metcalfe said the plans – which also include cuts to services in York and Scarborough – would save over £1.5 million a year, yet she insisted they are not cost-cutting measures.
She also said the savings would allow for investment in fire prevention.
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The proposals are part of the fire service’s Risk and Resource Model which sets out how it will deploy staff and equipment across North Yorkshire over the next three years.
The consultation will run until August 14 and residents are being urged to give their feedback online.
Commissioner Metcalfe said in a statement:
“The role of a fire and rescue service has changed and continues to change, with only 26% of our incidents last year relating to a fire emergency.
“We want to ensure we are addressing our current and future challenges and that we have the capacity to prevent and stop incidents happening in the first place.
“Inevitably, there are some areas where the setup of the service would change but I’m confident the right people, right equipment and the right support would continue to be available to everyone.”
To have your say go to www.TellCommissionerZoe.co.uk
Harrogate firefighter brands plans to rely on one fire engine ‘farcical’A Harrogate firefighter has spoken out against proposals to cut the number of overnight fire engines in the town.
North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner’s Office held a roadshow in Harrogate town centre yesterday to discuss its new three-year plan for the county’s fire service.
Its proposals include reducing the number of fire engines stationed in Harrogate overnight from two to one.
The plans would also see the station lose its tactical response vehicle, which would be moved to an on-call station elsewhere in the county.
The Stray Ferret went along to yesterday’s roadshow, which was not attended by Zoe Metcalfe, the police, fire and crime commissioner.
We spoke to Harrogate resident and firefighter of 16 years, Steve Applewood, who described the plans as “ridiculous” and a matter of huge concern.
He said a large fire or a fire that puts lives at risk required two water pumps and therefore two fire engines.
Harrogate Fire Station on Skipton Road.
If only one was available at night, Harrogate firefighters would have to wait 10 minutes for a crew to arrive from Knaresborough, he added.
“A 10-minute wait at a house fire is a long time. It also doesn’t give your first breathing apparatus crew a back-up team so in 10 minutes they could have worn down their air supply but with the delay on the second unit there isn’t another crew to take over straight away.
“Or sometimes, tactically, we send two teams in two directions and we wouldn’t have that option straight away.”
Changes are ‘farcical’
Currently one emergency fire engine and a tactical response unit operate in Harrogate overnight, which Mr Appleword accepted did not guarantee two crews with breathing apparatus. But he said the driver of the tactical response unit could become another member of the breathing apparatus crew if necessary.
He said colleagues thought the proposed changes were “farcical” adding:
“I’m against most of them, I think it’s ridiculous they’re looking at cutting the cover in Harrogate by 50%. It’s a real concern for us, a 10-minute wait could be the difference between life and death.”
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Currently, 10 crew members cover each shift in Harrogate and Mr Appleyard said the amount of new housing being built in the town was an added factor to consider with any planned reduction in service.
Councillors and a firefighter’s union have raised their concerns in recent weeks.
Tom Thorp, deputy monitoring officer for the commissioner’s office, who spoke to people at yesterday’s event, told us:
“It’s been a mix [of opinions], people can see the sense in some of it and for others it’s a concern. For us it’s about explaining the proposals and getting people’s opinions.”
Staff from the commissioner’s office will be holding pop-up roadshows across the county over the next nine weeks, returning to Harrogate on July 19.
People are encouraged to complete a survey on the proposals and share their views.
Focus on preventing fires
Ms Metcalfe has previously said her proposals focus on preventing fires.
“The role of a fire and rescue service has changed and continues to change, with only 26% of our incidents last year relating to a fire emergency.
“We want to ensure we are addressing our current and future challenges and that we have the capacity to prevent and protect to stop incidents happening in the first place and prevent harm before it can take place, while also having the capacity to respond to emergencies when they do take place. We are confident these proposals would do that.
“Inevitably, there are some areas where the setup of the service would change but I’m confident the right people, right equipment and the right support would continue to be available to everyone.”