Firefighters rescue horse after collision in Killinghall

Firefighters came to the rescue when a horsebox left the road in Killinghall today.

Crews from Harrogate and Ripon were summoned to the village at 12.07pm after a 7.5 tonne horse box left the road following a single vehicle collision.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service’s incident log said:

“Crews stabilised the vehicle to allow the owner to remove the horse from the rear of the vehicle. Incident then left with police.

“Crews used a tirfor winch and stabfast stabilisation equipment.”

Five minutes after the Killinghall call, Harrogate firefighters attended flooding in the basement of a house in Beckwithshaw.

The incident log said:

“Crews pumped water from basement and gave advice to owner. A light portable pump and hard suction were used at this incident.”

The incidents were part of a busy day shift for the Harrogate crew, which at 8am dealt with a reports of a diesel leak on a road in North Rigton.

Firefighters carried out an investigation and requested a highways gully-sucker to unblock a surface water drain.  

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Firefighters tackle microwave fire and chimney fire in Harrogate district

Firefighters were called to separate incidents involving a microwave fire and a chimney fire in the Harrogate district this afternoon.

Crews from Boroughbridge and Ripon responded to reports of a kitchen fire at Southolme Walk in Boroughbridge at 1.48pm.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service’s incident log said it turned out to be “a small fire confined within a microwave which was out upon our arrival”, adding:

“Crews assisted the occupant to ventilate the kitchen of light smoke logging.”

Shortly afterwards, at 2.53pm, Ripon firefighters were back on the road again to respond to reports o a chimney fire at Bouthwaite, near Pateley Bridge.

The incident log said:

“They extinguished the fire using one hose reel jet and chimney rods. The cause was an accumulation of soot. Advice was given to the occupier.”

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Five-vehicle collision blocks A59 at Blubberhouses

The A59 at Blubberhouses was blocked this afternoon when five vehicles were involved in a collision.

According to North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service’s incident log, the crash occurred when “a Range Rover had lost its wheel causing it to collide with four other vehicles”. It added:

“All occupants were out of the vehicles on the arrival of the fire service and suffered minor injuries, none required ambulance treatment.

“Crews made vehicles and the scene safe before leaving the incident with the police.”

Firefighters from Harrogate and Skipton were called at 12.02pm.

North Yorkshire Police tweeted about the crash, urging motorists to avoid the key route between Harrogate and Skipton.

⚠️ Traffic Alert ⚠️
The #A59 at #KexGill is currently blocked due to a multiple vehicle RTC. Please avoid the area while crews work at the scene. pic.twitter.com/bJswEpC4Tf

— N Yorks Police Traffic Bureau & Road Safety Team (@NYTrafficBureau) December 28, 2022

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Revealed: the Harrogate areas set for new council tax charge

Large parts of Harrogate, including Bilton, Starbeck and Jennyfields as well as central areas, look set to be hit by a new council tax charge.

North Yorkshire County Council said last week it would press ahead with plans to create a Harrogate town council after the results of an initial consultation revealed 75% in favour of the idea.

Areas covered by the new council, which will have 19 councillors, will face an additional charge on their council tax bills to pay for its services.

The sum is not yet known but Ripon City Council and Knaresborough Town Council currently charge £70.77 and £24.27 respectively for a band D property.

The areas facing new charges are:

A report on the consultation gave short shrift to calls by three respondents for Starbeck to get its own parish council. It said:

“No justification or detail was provided.

“It is considered that due to the small size of the area considered to be Starbeck, less than 6,000 electors, any parish council would not be in a position to provide services or amenities on the scale that could be provided by a much larger neighbouring Harrogate town council, potentially leading the the residents of Starbeck missing out on the opportunities to be provided by a larger town council.”

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How is council tax calculated?

Council tax bills in the Harrogate district are calculated by adding the sums charged for services by North Yorkshire County Council, Harrogate Borough Council, North Yorkshire Police and North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service, plus any parish precepts.

Harrogate residents do not currently pay a parish precept because it does not have a town council.

This year’s Harrogate district Band D bill, minus any parish precept charges, rose by £72 to £2,079.59. This is how it was broken down.

The abolition of Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council on April 1 means the charge for their services will no longer exist.

However, the new North Yorkshire Council, which will replace them, has indicated it will charge Harrogate district households £23.47 less than the amount currently paid to the two councils.

The new Harrogate town council charge could mean devolution, hailed as a cost-saving exercise, could actually result in higher council tax bills.

However, a Harrogate town council is unlikely to be formed until May 2024 so any precept it charges will not feature in the calculations for council tax bills in 2022/23, which will be finalised in the new year.

Harrogate town residents have been spared a parish precept because they do not have their own town council, unlike other towns in the Harrogate district and the city of Ripon.

So the abolition of Harrogate Borough Council and likely creation of a Harrogate town council will affect them more than residents in places such as Ripon, Knaresborough, Boroughbridge, Pateley Bridge and Masham, which already pay a parish precept.

In a report to the Conservative-controlled North Yorkshire County Council’s executive, Barry Khan, assistant chief executive (legal and democratic services) has recommended opening a second, eight-week consultation on creating a Harrogate town council on February 20.

The executive will meet on January 10 to decide whether to accept the recommendation.

 

 

Firefighters rescue family trapped on black ice in Nidderdale

Volunteer firefighters from Lofthouse rescued a family whose car was stuck on black ice last night.

The on-call firefighters were called to the notoriously steep Trapping Hill just outside the village at 6.50pm last night, on the final day of the recent freeze.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service’s incident log said:the car “had become immobile on black ice” and the family had been informed it would take six hours for a recovery vehicle to attend. It added:

“Firefighters walked two adults and one child into the safety of Lofthouse village.”

The incident log also noted that fire crews do not recover vehicles.

Temperatures have risen sharply today after more than a week of sub-zero conditions.

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Resident taken to hospital after house fire near Masham

A resident was taken to hospital last night after a house fire between Masham and Ripon.

Fire spread from the fireplace at the home in Mowbray Terace, West Tanfield, prompting firefighters from Ripon and Bedale to rush to the scene at 6.09pm.

It was the fourth incident attended by Ripon fiefighters yesterday. They also dealt with a garage fire, chimney fire and water leak.

North Yorkshire Fore and Rescue Service’s incident log said:

“The fire had spread from the fireplace and was extinguished using one hose reel jet, small tools and a positive pressure fan to ventilate.

“The occupant of the property was also taken to hospital with smoke inhalation.”

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Firefighters from Ripon, Harrogate and Masham called to garage fire

Firefighters from Ripon, Harrogate and Masham extinguished a fire in a garage on Dallamires Lane in Ripon today.

The garage, which contained one vehicle, is attached to a house. The extent of the damage is unknown.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue’s incident log said the alert came at 2.22pm. It added:

“Crews extinguished the fire using two breathing apparatus, one hose reel jet and a thermal imaging camera. The cause of the fire is yet to be established by fire investigation officers.”

It was the Ripon crew’s third call-out of the day. At 11.53am, city firefighters were summoned to a chimney fire on High Street in Markington. The incident log said:

“The fire was confined to the chimney and extinguished by the home owner prior to the fire service’s arrival. Crews carried out a thorough check for hot spots and gave advice to the home owner.”

At 7.59am,  a crew from Ripon responded to a report of water leaking at a home on Harrogate Road. The incident log said:

“Crews isolated the water leak in the loft and turned off the water to the property. Advice was given to a responsible person.”

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Fire at Fountains Abbey causes carols to be cancelled

An electrical fault caused a fire at Fountains Abbey near Ripon yesterday.

Ripon firefighters were called to the National Trust-owned property at 12.13pm after staff discovered there had been a small fire.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service‘s incident log said staff on site had already summoned an electrician and firefighters isolated the electricity supply.

A spokeswoman for Fountains Abbey said:

“There was a small electrical fire in the abbey on Sunday morning.

“Ripon fire service were contacted immediately and on arrival, they confirmed the fire was out and had been contained.

“Due to the nature of the fire, as a precaution, we took the decision to cancel Carols by Candlelight – despite its name, the event does require electrical power for a sound system to amplify the service to visitors, and to ensure there is sufficient lighting the abbey for the safety of our visitors.

“We’re very grateful to the fire service for their quick response and support.”

The UNESCO World Heritage Site is is one of the largest and best preserved ruined Cistercian monasteries in England.

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Reduction in Harrogate fire engines to begin next year

The reduction in the number of fire engines crewed overnight in Harrogate looks set to be implemented next year.

Zoë Metcalfe, the Conservative North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner, today published her blueprint on how fire resources will be deployed over the next three years.

Her Risk and Resource Model includes greater investment on fire prevention and rural on-call stations. But full-time urban fire stations in Harrogate and Scarborough will see the number of appliances staffed between 10pm and 9am reduced from two to one.

They will, however, get two emergency rescue fire engines at other times, when most fires occur, rather than the current one emergency vehicle and one less well equipped tactical response vehicle.

The nighttime reduction has been criticised by unions and councillors for putting lives at risk.

But today’s report, which was published after a 12-week summer consultation, provides some consolation. It says:

“We will adjust the night staffing proposals at Harrogate and Scarborough to provide added resilience by adding an additional firefighter.”

‘Low number of incidents’

The report reveals the county’s fire and rescue service received £38.2 million funding 2022/23, of which £23.4 millions came from council taxpayers.

Two-thirds of fire stations are on-call stations where firefighters respond to a pager from home or from their work. Ripon, Knaresborough, Boroughbridge, Masham, Lofthouse and Summerbridge have on-call stations in the Harrogate district, although Ripon has a full-time crew during the day.

Fire station locations in North Yorkshire. Pic: North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner

The report says:

“Because many people do not live and work in the same community anymore, many of our on-call stations struggle to have enough firefighters available to respond, especially during the day when demand is highest.”

It also says “many of our fire engines attend a relatively low number of incidents”. In the year to March, 31 2022, firefighters attended 7,594 incidents, of which 1,742 were fires, 2,485 incidents classed as ‘special services’ and 3,367 false alarms.

‘Reduce the need for an emergency response’

The report says the “increased focus on prevention aims to address and reduce risk and the need for an emergency response”.

The joint foreword by Ms Metcalfe and chief fire officer Jonathan Dyson says:

“We are a predominantly rural service where most of our stations are crewed by on-call firefighters. It is increasingly challenging to recruit and retain staff to keep our rural fire engines available to respond to emergencies. We intend to modernise and invest in our on-call service model to ensure it is sustainable and fit for the future and ultimately improve fire engine availability.

The report says the consultation revealed more support in favour of the proposals than against, but adds:

“The extent of disagreement was greater for proposed changes to the provision of response resource (Huntington, Harrogate and Scarborough).”

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Firefighters called to Pannal business

A faulty storage heater caused a fire at a business in Pannal today.

A member of staff dialled 999 when they noticed smoke at the commercial premises on Station Road.

Firefighters from Harrogate and Knaresborough were summoned to the scene at 8.43am and entered the building wearing breathing apparatus.

North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service’s incident log says they discovered a “small fire to a storage heater”, adding:

“Firecrews extinguished the heater, which had developed an electrical fault, and cleared the premises of smoke with a positive pressure ventilation fan.”

The fire, at the unnamed business, was the first of two incidents in the Harrogate district today.

At two minutes past midday, fire crews from Boroughbridge and Knaresborough were called to the A1 southbound near Boroughbridge to deal with a car fire.

A Vauxhall Zafira had caught fire following an engine fault. Firefighters using breathing apparatus dealt with the incident.

The incident log adds:

“Occupants had left scene, believed to have been picked up by another vehicle prior to arrival of emergency services.”

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