Two rural fire services have been told to make improvements by Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services

The Plymouth Herald reports criticisms of the Devon and Somerset firefighters for failing to meet its response standards. Chief Fire Officer Lee Howell defended his service arguing it was quicker than other predominantly rural forces. He continued: ’We think that being able to provide a fire engine to three out of four incidents within 10 minutes can be seen to be something of an achievement given our large geographical area.’ This comes amidst a delay over a decision on plans by the service to axe 46 whole-time firefighter posts and close eight fire stations.

At the other end of the country, The North Yorkshire service has been reprimanded in the Yorkshire Post for how efficiently it manages its resources and looks after its people, including response times. The standard demands that the first team should arrive at a house fire within 10 minutes of the call being received, including call handling and travel time.

Full articles:

The Plymouth Herald - Devon firefighters 'not getting to house fires in time', says new report