Friday 4 July
09:00
hrs
Firefighters in Bath are employing pedal power in a bid to
engage with local people and reduce the number of nuisance fires in
the city.
From this week, off-duty firefighters from Bath Fire Station
will be taking to new mountain bikes, visiting local neighbourhoods
to develop relationships between the fire service and the local
community. They will also provide a visible presence, offering fire
safety advice and working to reduce arson and anti-social behaviour
towards firefighters.
The bikes have been funded by David Medlock who was the High
Sheriff of Somerset between 2007 and 2008. Having visited Bath Fire
Station earlier this year, the former High Sheriff was very
impressed with the work firefighters are doing in the community and
offered to fund this new scheme.
While out on their bikes firefighters will be putting their
expert knowledge to use by alerting the relevant agencies if they
come across piles of rubbish, grass cuttings or vulnerable
buildings and vehicles - all of which are potential targets for
arsonists.
The launch of this scheme follows the success of similar
projects in Bristol in Hartcliffe and Southmead.
Officers from Avon Fire & Rescue Service hope that this will
make a significant contribution towards its own and its partners’
work concerning arson and anti-social behaviour. It is hoped that
the multi-agency approach, to remove arson targets from streets and
public places, will lead to a reduction in the number of
deliberately started fires.
AF&RS Group Manager for Bath and North East Somerset, Kevin
Keeler said: “We are very grateful to the former High Sheriff for
his generous contribution, which has helped bring this project to
fruition.
“The aim of the scheme is to help the service and our partners
to tackle deliberate fire setting as well as anti-social behaviour
in our area. The key to its success is the firefighters from Bath
Fire Station and it is very reassuring that so many are committed
to reducing risks in their community.
“Deliberately set fires represent a significant drain on our
resources and pose a real threat to life and property, whilst
anti-social behaviour is a particular issue for our public sector
partners. Unfortunately it’s all too easy for a fire started in
rubbish or a derelict building to spread and put people’s lives in
danger.
“Anything we can do to stop these fires happening in the first
place is obviously good news, both in terms of public safety and
the positive impact it will have on these communities.”
The project will run throughout school holidays when most
nuisance fires occur.