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Humberside Fire and Rescue Service

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Humberside Fire and Rescue Service (HFRS) is the statutory fire and rescue service covering the area of what was the county of Humberside (1974–1996), but now consists of the unitary authorities of East Riding of Yorkshire, Kingston upon Hull, North Lincolnshire and North East Lincolnshire in northern England.

Humberside Fire and Rescue Service
Operational area
CountryEngland
CountyHumberside
Agency overview
Established1974 (1974)
Employees992 Operational, 33 Control Room & 254 Support Staff
Chief Fire OfficerPhil Shillito[1]
EMS levelBLS
Facilities and equipment
Divisions4[2]
Stations31
Engines46 (9 Reserves)
Rescues2
Website
www.humbersidefire.gov.uk Edit this at Wikidata

History

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Service Headquarters near Hessle

Humberside Fire Brigade was formed in 1974 as a result of the Fire Services Act 1947 stating that all areas must have an official fire service; the brigade would later change its name to Humberside Fire and Rescue Service to reflect its expanded role in emergency cover after the county boundary changes on 1974.[3][4][5] When Humberside County Council was abolished in 1995, a parliamentary combination order came into effect, establishing Humberside Fire Authority (the current ruling body of Humberside Fire Brigade) with control of all brigade personnel, equipment and premises.[6] This is a combined fire authority, which is financed by the constituent councils of East Riding of Yorkshire Council, Kingston upon Hull City Council, North Lincolnshire Council and North East Lincolnshire Council.

In January 1987, Christine Bradley of Howden became Humberside Fire Brigade's first female firefighter.[7] Twenty years later in 2007, HFRS featured on a BBC One documentary entitled Women on Fire, following two female firefighters during a 16-day intensive training course to allow them to become retained firefighters for the service.[8]

In 2016, in line with other fire and police force mergers, a proposal was put forward that Humberside Fire and Rescue merge with the North Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service.[9] However, the proposal was not backed by the leaders of county councils and emergency commissioners in the Humberside operating area, and so the merger proposal was shelved.[10]

Performance

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Every fire and rescue service in England and Wales is periodically subjected to a statutory inspection by His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS). The inspections investigate how well the service performs in each of three areas. On a scale of outstanding, good, requires improvement and inadequate, Humberside Fire and Rescue Service was rated as follows:

HMICFRS Inspections Humberside
Area Rating 2018/19[11] Rating 2021/22[12] Description
Effectiveness Good Good How effective is the fire and rescue service at keeping people safe and secure from fire and other risks?
Efficiency Good Good How efficient is the fire and rescue service at keeping people safe and secure from fire and other risks?
People Requires improvement Good How well does the fire and rescue service look after its people?

Fire stations

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Clockwise from top left: Some of the service's major fire stations in Kingston upon Hull, Bridlington, Goole, Scunthorpe and Grimsby

HFRS operates 31 fire stations. These stations are strategically located to provide suitable coverage for the region. Nine of these stations are wholetime, three stations are wholetime and retained, and 19 stations are retained only. The 31 stations are divided into four Community Protection Units (CPUs), with each one covering a different area.[13]

The headquarters of HFRS are located on the western outskirts of Hull on Summergroves Way near the boundary with Hessle. This building houses the majority of the service's administration and support services including Stores, IT, Health & Safety, Training etc.

On 1 January 2013, plans were submitted to Hull City Council expressing Humberside Fire and Rescue Service's intention to replace Clough Road fire station with a new £3.9 million facility on the existing site. Planning permission was granted by Hull City Council in April 2013, and the new station became operational in July 2015.[14] Two new fire stations in central Hull and Brough were opened in 2017,[15][16] and in 2018, the £9 million Jean Bishop Integrated Care Centre (ICC), part of which contains a new fire station for the East Hull area, was opened.[17] Plans were approved in 2022 to extend Hornsea fire station by adding a new appliance bay, accommodating one of two new Rapid Intervention Vehicles acquired from Gatwick Airport in 2022,[18][19][20] and HFRS announced in August 2024 that its Howden station was to be rebuilt, scheduled for completion in 2025.[21]

Only one fire station has been closed by HFRS since its formation in 1974: this was Sledmere fire station, a single-appliance retained station closed in 2008 as part of cost-saving measures.[22][23]

Appliances

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A Scania P280 fire appliance in Kingston upon Hull

As of 2023, HFRS operates a fleet of 46 fire engines, including nine that are placed in strategic reserve.[citation needed] The frontline fleet of appliances is based on the Scania PRT-range as well as the Scania 4-series chassis; in 2018, HFRS became the first fire service in the United Kingdom to take delivery of Scania 'New Generation' PRT-range appliances, with a pair of P320s fitted with EmergencyOne bodies entering service as Rescue Support Units in Kingston upon Hull and Scunthorpe.[24][25]

In 2005, Humberside Fire and Rescue ordered two Combined Aerial Rescue Pump (CARP) fire appliances, manufactured by TVAC on the Mercedes-Benz Econic chassis. The South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service also made an order for four similar appliances, with all six orders totalling £3 million. Shortly after their 2007 delivery, however, various mechanical defects emerged with both Humberside and South Yorkshire's CARP appliances, including them being too heavy for UK roads. This caused the appliances to be regularly taken off the road, with members of the Fire Brigades Union later refusing to operate them. Humberside's second order for a CARP appliance was subsequently cancelled, with TVAC going out of business shortly after reports of defects began to emerge.[26][27]

Notable incidents

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  • Humbrol factory, Hull – 2 November 1988; started by the ignition of acetone spilled from a forklift, a large fire and explosions at the Humbrol paint factory in east Hull claimed the life of one employee and injured five others, requiring 125 Humberside firefighters and 25 appliances to extinguish the fire.[28][29][30]
  • Royal Station Hotel, Hull – 7 October 1990; up to 180 Humberside firefighters were on scene at a large fire at the Royal Station Hotel, caused by an electrical fault. Eleven of the 140 guests staying in the hotel were taken to hospital, and the building, which adjoins Hull Paragon Interchange, was completely destroyed.[28]
  • Bartoline, Beverley – 23 May 2003; Up to 150 HFRS firefighters and 28 appliances were deployed to a large fire and explosions from paint and oil storage tanks at the Bartoline factory on Swinemoor Industrial Estate in Beverley. The fire, which destroyed the factory and threatened to spread to adjoining buildings, was brought under control with no injuries reported.[31]
  • 2018 United Kingdom wildfires – June–July 2018; HFRS fire crews were deployed to aid Greater Manchester and Lancashire firefighters in tackling major moorland fires on Saddleworth Moor and Winter Hill.[32]
  • Bridgewood UK plastics factory, Hessle – 24–25 November 2021; A large fire and explosions, believed to have been started accidentally, destroyed the Bridgewood UK plastics factory on the Priory Park industrial estate adjacent to the town of Hessle. Over 150 HFRS firefighters and 14 appliances were deployed to tackle the fire, which destroyed 300 tonnes of plastic and also destroyed a nearby electrical substation. All employees of the factory were accounted for, and the fire was largely extinguished over 24 hours later.[33][34][35]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Humberside Fire and Rescue Service confirms new Chief Fire Officer". Emergency Services Times. 7 July 2022. Retrieved 16 October 2022.
  2. ^ "Your Local Area". Humberside Fire & Rescue Service. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
  3. ^ "Fire Services Act 1947". legislation.gov.uk. Retrieved 10 September 2022.
  4. ^ "About Us". Humberside Fire & Rescue Service. Archived from the original on 2 October 2012. Retrieved 11 January 2013.
  5. ^ Gledhill, Raymond (1 April 1974). "White Rose ties hold fast despite amputations and shake-up of boundaries". The Times. No. 59093. p. 31. ISSN 0140-0460.
  6. ^ "Fire Authority". humbersidefire.gov.uk/. Retrieved 10 September 2022.
  7. ^ Storey, Amanda (9 March 1990). "Christine blazes trail for women". Hull Daily Mail. p. 13. Retrieved 5 February 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ "Women on fire". BBC. Retrieved 20 September 2016.
  9. ^ Prest, Victoria (20 October 2016). "North Yorkshire and Humberside fire brigade merger suggested". The Press. York. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  10. ^ "Fire merger plans face rejection". The Yorkshire Post. Leeds. 4 November 2016. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
  11. ^ "Humberside 2018/19". Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS). 20 June 2019. Retrieved 30 June 2023.
  12. ^ "Humberside 2021/22". Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS). 27 July 2022. Retrieved 18 August 2022.
  13. ^ "Your Local Area". Humberside Fire & Rescue Service. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  14. ^ Blosse, Ben (25 July 2015). "Inside Hull's new £3.9m fire station in Clough Road". Hull Daily Mail. Archived from the original on 15 December 2015. Retrieved 18 February 2017.
  15. ^ Kitching, Sophie (12 May 2017). "New fire station in pole position to help residents". Hull Daily Mail. p. 21. ProQuest 1898153161.
  16. ^ Saker-Clark, Henry (27 July 2017). "New fire station on the river opens in Brough". Hull Daily Mail. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  17. ^ Kemp, Dan (13 March 2018). "A look behind the scenes at Hull's brand new £9m Jean Bishop Centre". Hull Daily Mail. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  18. ^ Gerrard, Joseph (3 May 2022). "East Yorkshire fire station expansion plans to house new 'rural' engines". Hull Daily Mail. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  19. ^ "Have you seen our new rapid intervention vehicles?". Humberside Fire & Rescue Service. 11 April 2022. Retrieved 6 May 2022.
  20. ^ "Planning Application Summary: Erection of a building to form an additional fire engine bay". Beverley: East Riding of Yorkshire Council. 22 June 2022. Retrieved 14 August 2024.
  21. ^ "Investing in Our Community: Rebuilding Howden Fire Station". Humberside Fire & Rescue Service. 13 August 2024. Retrieved 14 August 2024.
  22. ^ "Humberside Fire and Rescue Service strategic plan, proposed actions 2008-11 consultation document". Humberside Fire & Rescue Service. 2008. p. 26. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  23. ^ "Objectors oppose fire station becoming holiday cottages". The Yorkshire Post. Leeds. 18 May 2011. Retrieved 26 January 2022.
  24. ^ Barrow, George (23 January 2019). "Humberside fire service gets new Scania P-series trucks". Commercial Motor. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  25. ^ "Humberside Fire & Rescue takes delivery of UK's first New Generation Scania Rescue Support Units". UK Haulier. 13 December 2018. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  26. ^ "Fire engines too heavy for roads". BBC News. 21 January 2010. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  27. ^ "Firefighters in South Yorkshire refuse to use equipment". BBC News. 7 November 2011. Retrieved 11 January 2022.
  28. ^ a b Campbell, James (23 August 2020). "The devastating and tragic fires Hull will never forget". Hull Daily Mail. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  29. ^ "Behind the headlines: Twenty-three years ago, Janine Welford was pulled from an inferno at Hull's Humbrol factory". Hull Daily Mail. 4 November 2011. p. 8. ProQuest 902183672.
  30. ^ "New memorial to 1988 Humbrol fire". Hull Daily Mail. 3 November 2011. p. 3. ProQuest 901944454.
  31. ^ "Investigations start into factory fire". BBC News. 23 May 2003. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  32. ^ Pidd, Helen (1 July 2018). "Firefighters from seven counties fight Greater Manchester moor fires". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  33. ^ Rane, Aditi; Lucas, Hannah (26 November 2021). "Hessle factory fire: More than 150 firefighters, 300 tonnes of burning plastic and 127 frantic 999 calls". Hull Daily Mail. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  34. ^ "Hessle fire at Bridgewood plastics 'likely accident'". BBC News. 26 November 2021. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
  35. ^ Pidd, Helen (24 November 2021). "Hessle fire: explosions heard as firefighters tackle huge blaze near Hull". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 April 2022.
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