Tyne and Wear and Northumberland Fire Services thank residents for support after Bonfire Night
by Owen Younger · ChronicleLiveBoth Tyne and Wear and Northumberland Fire Services have thanked residents for their support after Bonfire Night. The two North East services were well prepared for one of their busiest times of the year.
Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service received over 480 calls during the extremely busy day, with the Control Room team answering between 100 and 110 emergency calls on an average day. The total number of incidents attended on November 5 itself was 111 compared to 153 the previous year, showing a decrease of over 25%.
The control room at Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service handled 67 calls, down from 79 last year, and fire crews attended 49 incidents, an increase from 32 last year. Firefighters were not subjected to any abuse or attacks during this period.
It comes after County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service revealed fire engines and firefighters were attacked 'in disgusting' scenes. Lit fireworks were thrown at crews, while fire engines were hit with bricks.
Paul Russell, Area Manager for Community Safety at TWFRS, said: "First and foremost we would like to thank our staff, crews, residents, community groups and regionwide partners for their ongoing support during the Darker Nights season, which includes the busy period of Bonfire Night.
"We work closely in the local community to help educate people, young and old, about the dangers of deliberate fire-setting and the effects it can have on individuals, their family, friends and the local area.
"As ever, our Fire Service colleagues efficiently dealt with the influx of emergency calls and requests that were received by the Control Room team and then handled by operational crews and Duty Officers. It is our goal to keep people safe from harm all year round."
TWFRS also delivered 54 fire safety sessions to 26 schools, reaching 9376 young people. The sessions saw TWFRS prevention and education officers providing essential fire safety advice ahead of Bonfire Night.
Area Manager Joe Haustead from NFRS, said: "This is always one of our busiest nights of the year, and we had well-rehearsed plans in place, working with our partners to deal with the anticipated increases in calls and incidents.
"As well as our crews on the ground, our fire control room operators took calls for Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service to support our colleagues across the border at this busy time.
"We’d also like to thank all those residents who enjoyed the occasion and those who attended the local organised events – which are always the best way of enjoying a safe Bonfire Night.
"Finally thanks to all members of the community who supported our crews when they did attend emergencies, as the public were very supportive and co-operative and we saw no instances of anti-social behaviour towards any of our crews."
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