FBU: Fire service changes ‘could lead to 16 minute delays’
Proposals include turning the Huntington fire station into an on-call service
Fire response times in north York could jump dramatically if full-time firefighters are axed at a city station, a union leader has claimed.
The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) is opposed to plans which would turn Huntington fire station into an on-call service.
North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner (NYPFCC), Zoë Metcalfe, is consulting on the changes, which would also see the second fire engine from night-time cover cut at Harrogate and Scarborough fire stations.
Steve Howley, North Yorkshire FBU secretary, said the changes at Huntington could lead to delays of up to 16 minutes for people living in Huntington, Haxby, Wigginton, Strensall, New Earswick and parts of Rawcliffe.
He added: “Over 31,000 residents will see an average increase in attendance times of eight minutes and data reveals that delays of up to 16 minutes can be expected – in a fire every second counts.
“Our members do not believe that NYFRS are being transparent with the City of York taxpayers with their quoted delay in attendance of 3m 47s.”
The FBU pointed to a 2020 incident in which the part-time fire engine at Huntington took 16 minutes to get to an incident. The average mobilisation time was 7m 59s.
Mr Howley said: “This is much longer than the five minute normally permissible time.”
He said this was not the fault of part-time firefighters, but that Huntington “is not in a location which allows for recruitment of staff within five minutes.
The time it takes firefighters to get to get to the station from home has to be taken into account for an on-call service.
Mr Howley said York council taxpayers contributed more than 25 per cent of the service’s locally raised revenue, which was enough to cover the costs of all of the stations and staff in the city.
“It’s not robbing Peter to pay Paul, it’s robbing York to prop up a mismanaged fire and rescue service,” he said.
He urged people to respond to Ms Metcalfe’s consultation and asked the PFCC to attend a meeting of Home Secretary Priti Patel, the FBU and Rachael Maskell, which has been proposed by the York Central MP.
“There is still time to put a stop to this madness,” he added
Ms Metcalfe said there had been a review of risk across the region with the intention of ensuring there were the “right people in the right place at the right time with the right equipment to keep everyone safe and protect all our communities.”
She said Huntington was classified as “low risk” and that the model proposed for the station was already widely used across North Yorkshire.
The York area is covered by two other full-time stations, and on-call fire engines at York and Acomb also cover the Huntington area, Ms Metcalfe said.
“Under our proposals we would keep a small number of full-time firefighters at Huntington to supplement the on-call crew and assist with the recruitment of these team members until such a time we are confident the on-call crewing is both resilient and sustainable,” she added.
“Of course, we can never stop every emergency and, it is correct to say that every second counts when responding, but it is also important to recognise that it is vital that the right resources are sent to each incident.”
Ms Metcalfe will be at Huntington Post Office on Friday, July 8, to discuss her plans.
A consultation on the proposals runs until Sunday, August 14.