05 Jan 2012
A firefighters’ union has cast serious doubt over a service’s proposal to stop responding to alarms that go off automatically.
The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) suggested that it would be “unprofessional” for Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service to go ahead with proposals that would prevent it from sending fire engines out during the day whenever alarms went off at business premises deemed to be low-risk.
Although it said none of its proposals would ever put people’s lives in jeopardy, the fire service disclosed that 94% of the automatic calls it receives are false alarms.
The service’s plans should be withdrawn, according to the FBU.
Tam McFarlan, the union’s regional official for the South West, stated: “It flies in the face of every piece of advice and every standard operating procedure that the fire service has had in the last 20 or 30 years.”
Copyright Press Association 2012