Government Minister witnesses Fire Service unveiling new equipment
25 April 2008
On Friday 25th April at 1100 at Eccles Fire Station the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government and Salford MP, the Rt Hon Hazel Blears will witness the official handover of six new fire engines* and a water incident unit** by the Chairman of Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority, Councillor Fred Walker, and will also officially hand over the keys to a specialist vehicle*** provided by the government under the New Dimensions project.***
The new specially designed engines and Water Incident Unit are to be officially handed over to Salford, Agecroft, Irlam and Eccles Fire Stations by Cllr Walker as part of an ongoing replacement programme that ensures Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service provides a high quality emergency service for the public of Greater Manchester.
The Volvo engines allocated to Salford Borough are six of 16 purchased by Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service representing a total of £2.6 M investment in the frontline fleet.
The water incident unit and its sister unit which is stationed at Heywood Fire Station, cost over £75,000 each and has a much higher specification than those that they are replacing. A rescue boat has been stationed at Eccles for many years, and the current Water Incident Unit has been in service since 1994 **.
Hazel Blears MP will hand over the keys to a specially designed Detection Identification and Monitoring Vehicle (DIM)*** which is a highly specialised vehicle designed to be a regional resource for the North West, or anywhere in the UK it may be needed. It is equipped with state of the art equipment designed to assist fire fighters in the identification of unknown materials at a range of incidents, utilising inbuilt testing machinery and an onboard data base, as well as allowing access to other databases using an inbuilt communications system.
County Fire Officer, Barry Dixon says, “It is vital for the protection of both the public and fire fighters alike that the Brigade invests in high quality training, equipment and specialist rescue appliances”.
Assistant County Fire Officer Kieran Nolan, who has the responsibility for Brigade Operations said, “The Brigade has a rolling vehicle replacement programme across the County. All the public of Greater Manchester will benefit from the new vehicles based in Salford Borough, which replace the previous older type. The vehicles are state of the art and will undoubtedly deliver a high quality service”.
Hazel Blears, MP said, “I am delighted to be handing over this state-of-the-art equipment to some of the most courageous men and women in the country. I pay tribute to their spirit of public service, and am pleased that their bravery is matched by the government's investment in modern equipment to do the job. The people of Salford and Eccles can be reassured that our fire-fighters are the best of the best.”
During the visit to Salford Borough Headquarters the invited dignitaries will be given chance to see displays by some of the partnership groups who work with Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service, helping to maintain the safety of the public****. They will also witness the County Fire Officer, Barry Dixon presenting a certificate of thanks to the fire fighters from the Chief Fire Officer of Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue Service , for the assistance that fire fighters from Greater Manchester gave as part of a national response to the flooding incidents in 2007.
Editors notes:
*Costing over £150,000 each and programmed to have an operational life of 12 years the new fire engines have a range of design feature including –
- An engine rated to Euro 4 environment standards and an added feature of exhaust after treatment, which reduces CO2 emissions by up to 95% and particulate emissions by up to 99%, and a crew cab designed to reduce noise.
- CCTV systems designed to aid in the defence against attacks on firefighters.
- A new lower square design than the service’s traditional design which is almost one third of a tonne lighter and is fitted with rear air suspension which can be lowered at an incident, allowing easier access to equipment.
- A body construction now made as a single composite GRP superstructure complete with a fully integral water tank which is much lower than the appliance its replaces. This creates a lower centre of gravity ultimately improving overall performance.
**A rescue boat has been stationed at Eccles for many years and this Water Incident Unit is equipped with all the latest technological advances including all heavy equipment stowed at low level, in most cases mounted on swing out arms to facilitate easier removal. The vehicle is also fitted with rear air suspension which can be lowered at an incident to make equipment removal even easier.
With GMFRS Rescue Boats carrying out 74 rescues during 2005 & 2006, the Brigade has moved to a light weight inflatable rescue boat which can be carried inside the vehicle bodywork, negating the need for a trailer. This compact design of boat is designed to be inflated and made ready for use in less than two minutes, and its light weight construction requires the minimum of crew to carry the craft to off road quarries, estuaries or river banks.
*** The Detection Investigation and Monitoring (DIM) capability is part of the Government's investment of over £200million in specialist equipment and resources for the Fire and Rescue Services in England. Known as the New Dimension project this has provided the FRS with specialist equipment and dogs for rescue from collapsed buildings, mass decontamination and high volume pumping equipment to help deal with the challenges of today's world whether they are from industrial accidents, or terrorist or weather related incidents.
The DIM teams located throughout England enhance the ability of the FRS to attend chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) incidents. Each DIM unit contains a range of equipment to detect and identify chemical and biological contaminants, detect gamma and beta radiation sources and identify a range of radioactive isotopes. Deployment of the DIM capability within the early response phase of an incident is required to ensure that responders have the appropriate information on the nature of the threat to which they are responding and enables the Fire and Rescues services to take efficient and effective action.
**** Partner’s who will attend on the day include –
Firefly
Firefly is aimed at young people between 11 and 17 who may be experiencing difficulties in engaging with school or their peers. They may have low self-esteem or confidence. As a result they may be displaying anti-social behaviour including deliberate firesetting and malicious calls to the emergency services. The programme is also aimed at young people who have offended or may be at risk of offending.
Prince’s Trust
The programme is available for both unemployed and employed young people and includes work experience, careers advice and job opportunities, new qualifications, challenging projects, an action-packed team building week away, the chance to make a difference to the community and much more.The scheme is aimed at young people aged 16 – 25.
Safeguard it
The aim of the project is to provide every one of the 5,033 high risk homes in the Ashton Regeneration Area with a free Home Fire Risk Assessment, a free smoke alarm and where appropriate additional fire protective measures. This is a 3 year pilot. In the first year, our work will concentrate on the Ashton Regeneration area. Years 2 and 3 will concentrate on the rolling out the development of these principles to the other priority neighbourhoods within Tameside namely Droylsden East, Denton South, Newton, Ridge Hill and Smallshaw.
This is an innovative project. GMFRS will be working closely with St Peters Partnership, a registered charity based in Ashton under Lyne.
St. Peter’s Partnership.
St. Peter's Partnership is the community led umbrella organisation operating in the Ashton Regeneration Area. The organisation began when like-minded residents came together initially on a monthly basis to discuss common issues and develop ways of working together to address the problems they were experiencing. This eventually led to an agreement between the groups that they should formalise their relationship and, four years ago, St. Peter's Partnership was created as the umbrella organisation for all community groups in the area. The Partnership has grown enormously in recent years and is now a registered charity, managing six community projects with a trading arm. The Partnership Board envisages St. Peter's playing an important role in the future regeneration of the Area.
Fireteam 6
FIRETEAM6 is a six week programme aimed at school groups aged 14 – 16. Run by firefighters at fire stations, it involves a mixture of practical activities with a consistent fire service theme designed amongst other things to educate young people about fire service training, to promote educational achievement, to spread the values of citizenship and social inclusion and help young people learn about community safety.
Streetlights
The “Streetlights” project is currently being trialled in conjunction with Salford City Reds Rugby League Club and is unique in as much that it intends to move away from the traditional methods of coaching children in schools during lesson times and offer the chance for local youngsters to learn and play rugby league under “Streetlight” at evenings and weekends. By engaging with ‘disengaged’ youngsters in one of the most challenging areas within Salford, (Little Hulton) over a number of weeks (5 -6) at a time when youngsters are perceived to be involved in “anti-social” activities, Salford Borough for GMFRS hopes that through this joint Initiative both anti-social behaviour incidents as well as fire related statistics will be reduced.
Boxing Initiative
Boxing has a certain kudos in Moss Side and boxers are held in high esteem by their peers, by engaging with young people both male and female and enhancing their credibility amongst their peers we are having an influence at street level in group or gang situations, the boxing is held at a fire station coached by fire fighters with fire service messages where ever they look, these are local kids interacting with local fire fighters who work and come across them on the streets of Moss Side.
The Reclaim Project
Urbis, the Manchester museum dealing with the city and urban culture, has launched an innovative project and conference to address the gang related crimes that continue to feature prominently in the city.
The Reclaim Project delivers a challenging four day programme of activities for 45 young black male teenagers aged 12-14 from Moss Side, Manchester
A group of successful Manchester men, consisting of youth workers nominated for their outstanding commitment to the community, will be mentors to the young people providing advice and practical workshops.
Press enquires
All enquiries regarding this press statement should be made to:
The Media Liaison Officer
Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service Headquarters
146 Bolton Road
Swinton
Manchester
M27 8US
Telephone: 0161 608 4090/1
Fax: 0161 608 4095