Comments sent to West Sussex Town and Parish Councils affected by the Hampshire fire cuts:

I know that many of you are concerned about the proposed Hampshire Fire & Rescue Service cuts and the effect that will have on response times in your areas. Some of you were at the Chichester South CLC meeting, when Louise Goldsmith (County Council Leader) emphatically said that West Sussex would not comment on those proposals. Sadly, a Hampshire Fire Authority report now reveals that, not only did West Sussex County Council comment, they actually endorsed the cuts.

I am sure you will also be concerned to hear that, following the consultation, the Hampshire cuts on the West Sussex border are unchanged. Instead of ten Hampshire fire engines close to West Sussex, there will only be three. The others are to be replaced with an Intermediate Vehicle and six First Response Vehicles, all of which will carry less equipment, water and firefighters. This comes after West Sussex closed Bosham fire station five years ago, and removed second fire engines from Midhurst and Petworth last year.

Hampshire concealed the figures for incidents they attend in West Sussex, and they have grossly exaggerated the benefits of new technology. The only information released about the new vehicles is that they will be smaller and will often respond with just two firefighters, instead of at least four. This is a large scale and dangerous experiment, which is not supported by evidence or trials. Protection for West Sussex residents near the Hampshire border will be significantly reduced.

Instead of West Sussex County Council offering realistic funding for the incident responses provided by Hampshire, they actually seconded an officer to Hampshire to help with the cuts. Active support for cuts, even though they admitted they were concerned about increased response times in West Sussex.

I am sure that you will feel let down, especially after Louise Goldsmith’s pronouncement about not getting involved with another authority’s business. You may wish to ask her how she will plug the gap when Hampshire make their cuts. Their Fire Authority meets on Wednesday to rubber stamp the plans.

County Councillors again try to ignore Fire & Rescue Service concerns

Once again County Councillor Margaret Evans, tried to stop me speaking during the “tell us your concerns” section of the Chichester South County Local Committee meeting last evening. My concern – the effect on parts of West Sussex of Hampshire Fire Authority cuts. I refused to be bullied and reminded her that this is a matter that directly affects people in the Committee’s area.

After explaining the dangers for West Sussex residents, I asked a question, “Following the closure of Bosham fire station, the reduction of fire engines in West Sussex from 46 to 35, and the 7% increase in building fires in West Sussex last year, how will you, as County Councillors, ensure that there is adequate protection for the Chichester South area, if Hampshire cuts go ahead?”

Her answer - Well I am not a fire officer, so that would have to be up to the fire officer, so I can’t really deal with that.

Leader of the Council, Louise Goldsmith, then said, “May I also suggest that we do not comment on other authorities, because we just don’t do that.” She later said, “Our Chief Fire Officer advises us accordingly, and as a professional we take his advice”.

They both also insisted that I should respond direct to the Hampshire consultation. Fortunately though there were some voices of reason and concern at the meeting.

County Councillor Sandra James said, “It’s pretty outrageous, as I sit on this panel, to listen to the leader and the chair say it’s not our business. She spoke about how important Emsworth and Havant fire crews were to the people in her division. She also asked for the Chief Fire Officer to provide her with the information she had requested, and for a link to the Hampshire consultation to be provided on the West Sussex County Council website.

She received no answer from the Chairman or the Council Leader to the first question, and it also became clear that they are not going to put a link on their website. The Chairman of Westbourne Parish Council, who said they are just one metre from Hampshire, pointed out that other parishes are unaware of the “serious changes that will have dire effects on our families”. His call for a link on the West Sussex website was also ignored.

So what does this say about the ruling group on the County Council?

1. They ignore their legal responsibility to ensure that West Sussex residents are properly protected.
2. They accept the advice of the Chief Fire Officer without checking if it is good or bad advice.
3. They dismiss anyone who dares to suggest that the advice they are given may not be in the best interests of West Sussex residents.
4. They won’t express any concern to the Hampshire Fire Authority, “because we just don’t do that.”
5. They bury their heads in the sand and cross their fingers, instead of properly reviewing the operation of the Fire & Rescue Service in West Sussex.

How bad will things have to get before they begin to carry out their responsibilities properly?

Serious Fire Highlights Loss of Fire Engines

Last night’s serious fire in Bognor Regis is an important reminder of the need for adequate resources. The fire needed eleven standard fire engines from Bognor Regis (2), Chichester (2), Littlehampton (2), East Preston, Arundel, Havant (Hampshire), Worthing and Midhurst

The 1978 Woolworth store fire in Bognor Regis required 32 standard fire engines to contain and extinguish it, and it provides an interesting comparison when you compare resources available then and now.

Removed since 1978 have been the Hydraulic Platform from Chichester, and fire engines from Bognor Regis (3rd), Bosham (station closed), East Preston (2nd), Midhurst (2nd), Petworth (2nd), Storrington (2nd), Lancing (2nd), Findon (station closed), Keymer (station closed), Horley (both fire engines removed), and Crawley (3rd).

Hampshire fire engines involved at the Woolworth incident, or standing by for other calls at West Sussex stations, were Emsworth, Cosham x 2, Havant x 2, Waterlooville, Petersfield, Fareham, and Portchester. Drastic cuts are of course now planned for these stations.

The Fire & Rescue Service keep using a recent drop in incidents to falsely justify cuts, so when thinking about resources that have been removed, it is worth remembering that in 1978 there were just 5,654 incidents in West Sussex. In 2013-14 there were 9,337 incidents, which is 40% more. Resources were not improved when calls increased, they have just been progressively cut.