Letter: Fire & Rescue Service Changes Will Not Provide Adequate Service

Published on: 2 Oct, 2019
Updated on: 2 Oct, 2019

From Noel Miller

In response to: How SCC Is Improving Our Fire and Rescue Services To Make Surrey Safe

The changes envisage just one fire engine crewed by four firefighters being immediately available to cover Guildford at night.

How can fire engines be up to 50 per cent quicker at night when the roads are icy or the weather is bad?

If a fire which puts people at risk should occur in a high-rise block of flats or university halls-of-residence, four firefighters would have to wait for backup before safely starting to rescue people and fight the fire.

The attendance time of the second and third fire engines is crucial. Mobilisation of the nearest fire engines in the middle of the night will still rely on fire engines responding from their stations, with the on-call fire engine at Guildford taking at last five minutes before its crew can be mobilised. Back up from Gomshall, Godalming and Woking would be at least fifteen minutes away.

Having witnessed a fire sweep through a block of flats in less than five minutes I know that is not quick enough.

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