Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service
Operational area | |
---|---|
Country | England |
County | Hampshire |
Agency overview | |
Chief Fire Officer | Dave Curry |
Facilities and equipment | |
Stations | 51 |
Website | |
Official website |
Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service (HFRS) is the statutory fire and rescue service for the county of Hampshire, on the south coast of England. The service's chief fire officer is Dave Curry.[1][2]
History
The Service was formed on 4 April 1948 as a result of the Fire Services Act 1947.
Previously all local authorities were duty-bound to make provision for firefighting under the Fire Brigades Act 1938. Many meetings and discussions were held prior to the service's creation in 1948 by the Hampshire fire service committees, to discuss who would be appointed the role of chief fire officer and how the service would be structured.
With ongoing expansion, the service was under increasing pressure to open a service HQ. The FRS was originally hoping to use and acquire North Hill House in Winchester for usage as the headquarters — a building still desired by the Admiralty at the time and therefore the service was not allowed to buy it. In May 1948; the admiralty gave up the premises and allowed the service to operate it. However twenty years later in 1968, the service HQ moved to a floor of Ashburton Court, The Castle, Winchester as well as the control room.
In 1997, Hampshire County Council lost control of the FRS, transferring responsibility to the newly formed Hampshire Fire and Rescue Authority.[3]
At the close of 2015, Chief Constable Andy Marsh and more than 100 Hampshire Constabulary staff moved into the fire headquarters in Eastleigh, creating the first shared police and fire headquarters in the country. As well co-location of senior staff from both services, several support functions such as Human Resources, IT and Equipment Stores are now being shared from the Leigh Road site.[4]
Fire Stations/Appliances
Station Callsign | Station Name | Duty System | Appliances |
---|---|---|---|
H01 | Basingstoke | Wholetime/Retained | 1x RP, 1x WrL, 1x WrT, 1x RSV, 1x CSU |
H02 | Rushmoor | Wholetime/Retained | 1x RP, 1x LRP, 1x WrT, 1x L4T, 1x WV, 1x CSU, 1x FESS |
H03 | Bordon | Retained | 1x WrT, 1x WrC, 1x H4T, 1x CRV |
H04 | Fleet | Retained | 1x WrT, 1x WrC |
H05 | Alton | Retained | 1x RP, 1x FRV, 1x L4T, 1x EPU |
H06 | Whitchurch | Retained | 1x LRP |
H07 | Grayshott | Retained | 1x WrT |
H08 | Hartley Wintney | Retained | 1x WrL, 1x L4T, 1x CRV |
H09 | Kingsclere | Retained | 1x WrL |
H10 | Odiham | Retained | 1x WrL |
H11 | Overton | Retained | 1x WrT, 1x ARU |
H12 | Tadley | Retained | 1x WrL |
H13 | Liphook | Retained | 1x WrL, 1x L4T, 1x CRV |
H14 | Yateley | Retained | 1x WrT |
H16 | Havant | Wholetime/Retained | 1x RP, 1x WrL, 1x L4T |
H17 | Fareham | Wholetime/Retained | 1x RP, 1x WrL, 1x WrC, 1x L4T, 1x WRU |
H18 | Gosport | Wholetime/Retained | 1x WrL, 1x WrT, 1x WRU |
H19 | Waterlooville | Retained | 1x WrL, 1x WrT |
H21 | Hayling Island | Retained | 1x WrL, 1x WrT |
H22 | Wickham | Retained | 1x WrL, 1x CRV |
H23 | Cosham | Wholetime | 1x WrL, 1x WrT, 1x RSV |
H24 | Southsea | Wholetime | 1x RP, 1x LRP, 1x WrT, 1x SFV, 1x ALP |
H25 | Horndean | Retained | 1x WrT, 1x CRV |
H26 | Emsworth | Retained | 1x WrT, 1x CRV |
H28 | Portchester | Retained | 1x WrT, 1x CSU, 1x CRV |
H29 | Petersfield | Retained | 1x RP, 1x WrL, 1x L4P, 1x CRV |
H30 | Winchester | Wholetime/Retained | 1x RP, 1x WrT, 1x DIM, 1x ALP, 1x SFV |
H31 | Andover | Wholetime/Retained | 1x RP, 1x WrT, 1x WrC/FOT, 1x L4P, 1x CRV |
H32 | Eastleigh | Wholetime/Retained | 1x RP, 1x WrT, 1x WrC/FOT, 1x L4P, 1x CSU, 1x PM+FRU |
H33 | Romsey | Retained | 1x WrL, 1x WrT, 1x EPU, 1x CRV |
H34 | Stockbridge | Retained | 1x WrL, 1x L4T, 1x CRV |
H35 | Sutton Scotney | Retained | 1x WrT |
H36 | Alresford | Retained | 1x WrL, 1x L4T, 1x CRV |
H38 | Botley | Retained | 1x WrT, 1x CRV |
H40 | Bishops Waltham | Retained | 1x WrL |
H41 | Droxford | Retained | 1x WrT |
H42 | HQ | Retained | 1x WrL (only available during HQ working hours), 1x ICU, 1x CSU, 1x FESS |
H43 | Lymington | Retained | 1x RP, 1x WrL, 1x CRV |
H44 | Hythe | Retained | 1x WrL, 1x L4T, 1x CRV |
H45 | Ringwood | Retained | 1x RP, 1x WrT, 1x L4P, 1x CRV |
H46 | Totton | Retained | 1x WrT |
H47 | Fordingbridge | Retained | 1x WrL, 1x WrC, 1x L4P |
H48 | Lyndhurst | Retained | 1x RP, 1x WV, 1x ARU |
H49 | Beaulieu | Retained | 1x WrT, 1x CSU |
H50 | Brockenhurst | Retained | 1x WrT, 1x H4T, 1x CRV |
H51 | New Milton | Retained | 1x WrL, 1x WrT, 1x CRV |
H52 | Burley | Retained | 1x WrL, 1x L4T |
H53 | Redbridge | Wholetime | 1x RP, 1x RSV |
H54 | St Mary's | Wholetime | 1x WrL, 1x LRP, 1x ALP, 1x SFV |
H55 | Hamble | Retained | 1x WrT, 1x L4P, 1x CRV |
H56 | Hightown | Wholetime | 1x RP, 1x WrT, 1x IRU |
H58 | Hardley | Retained | 1x RP, 1x L4P, 1x PM+HVP, 1x PM+HVHL |
H69 | Eastleigh Specialist and Technical Rescue | Wholetime/Retained | 1x SRU, 1x SDU, 1x OSU, 5x PM for 5x USAR Pods |
Appliances in bold are temporary allocations whilst the rebuild of Basingstoke fire station is taking place.
Fire Appliance Glossary/Callsigns
- Water Tender Ladder (WrL): P1
- Water Tender (WrT): P4
- First Response Vehicle (FRV): P5
- Light Rescue Pump (LRP): P6
- Rescue Pump (RP): P7
- Small Fires Vehicle (SFV): L1
- Water Carrier (WrC): W1
- Aerial Ladder Platform (ALP): A1
- Incident Command Unit (ICU): C1
- Command Support Unit (CSU): C2 (HQ)/C3
- Environmental Protection Unit (EPU): H1
- Light 4x4 Pump (L4P): M1
- Light 4x4 Vehicle (L4T/P): M2
- Heavy 4x4 Vehicle (H4T): M3
- Wildfire Vehicle (WV): M4
- Response Support Vehicle (RSV): R1
- Water Rescue Unit (WRU): R2
- Animal Rescue Unit (ARU): R3
- Fire & Emergency Support Service unit (FESS): S5
- Prime Mover + High Volume Pump (PM+HVP): T1
- Prime Mover + High Volume Hose Layer (PM+HVHL): T2
- Prime Mover + Foam Response Unit (PM+FRU): T5/T6
- Co-Responder Vehicle (CRV): V1
CBRN Response:
- Detection, Identification & Monitoring (DIM): H8
- Incident Response Unit (IRU): H9
Urban Search & Rescue (USAR):
- Search & Rescue Unit (SRU): R4
- Search & Rescue Dog Unit (SDU): R9
- Operational Support Unit (OSU): T1
- Prime Mover (PM): T2/T3/T4/T5/T6
Pods:
- Module 1 - Technical Search Equipment
- Module 2 - Heavy Transport, Confined Space & Hot Cutting
- Module 3 - Breaching & Breaking Equipment
- Module 4 - Multi Purpose Vehicle
- Module 5 - Shoring Operations
Co-Responder and Immediate Emergency Care
Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service works in partnership with the South Central Ambulance Service to provide emergency medical cover to select areas of Hampshire. Currently, 21 areas have been identified as having a greater need for ambulance cover. Annually, the service attends over 13,000 medical emergencies supporting the ambulance service. The aim of a co-responder is to preserve life until the arrival of either a Rapid Response Vehicle (RRV) or an ambulance. Co-Responder Vehicles are single manned by a specially trained firefighter, who will take the vehicle to his or her workplace/home and will respond from there when alerted to an incident via pager. Each vehicle is equipped with:
- Defibrillator
- Bag and mask resuscitator
- Oxygen
- Airways
- Suction units
- Standard first aid equipment
- Entonox (analgesic gas)
In addition to co-responding, the service has also rolled out the Immediate Emergency Care (IEC) program which has resulted in all front line fire appliances being equipped with more advanced medical equipment. This includes a defibrillator, Entonox and patient monitoring equipment. As of October 2016, all appliances and front line crews had received the IEC training and equipment.
Future - Risk Review
Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service is facing a potential £16m gap in Government funding by 2020. In order to face this dramatic cut in funding, a comprehensive risk review of the service has been undertaken to find more efficient and cost effective ways to provide fire and rescue services to the people of Hampshire.[5] Following a public consultation in Autumn 2015, the final proposals confirmed that none of the 51 fire stations in Hampshire will close and there will be no compulsory redundancies. However, all fire stations will have a drop in the number of operational firefighters and a number of fire stations will have different crewing systems to match the community risk profile of each station area.[6]
The second major change affects response vehicles; the current system has at least one standard fire appliance (with approximately similar equipment fits) at each fire station, irrespective of the typical incidents and equipment used at incidents on each station ground. The Risk Review aims to match vehicle capability and disposition to the prevailing local risk by introducing three different types of response capability based on risk parameters.[7] Each fire station will hence have vehicles deemed appropriate for the incidents they are likely to face. The three response capabilities are:
- First Response Capbility
This will be a much smaller vehicle than a traditional fire engine whilst retaining significant capability. They will be able to get to incidents quicker due to their small size and will be suitably equipped to deal with the majority of incidents types in the local area unsupported. Some will have 4 wheel drive to improve access to rural incidents. They will be fitted with the latest technology, including a Ultra High Pressure Lance (UHPL), to allow firefighters to attack fires with greater safety. It will also carry RTC cutting gear, enhanced medical equipment and breathing apparatus, along with a selection of other fire and rescue equipment. Most crucially, it can be mobilised with a crew of between two and four depending on the type of incident. This means that retained stations with a reduced number of available firefighters can still respond to certain low-risk incidents with a smaller crew.
- Intermediate Capability
This will be slightly smaller than a traditional fire engine, making it more agile and faster in rural areas and compact city streets. They will carry the same equipment as the First Response Vehicles along with a greater water carrying capacity, larger ladders and additional rescue equipment, as well as the UHPL. They will have the same medical equipment as the other vehicle types in order to provide vital emergency medical care in the community. Again, the number of firefighters on board (between two and five) will depend upon the severity of the incident and other resources will be sent to support them if necessary. The first five trial vehicles will be based at Southsea, St Mary's, Basingstoke, Rushmoor and Whitchurch.
- Enhanced Capability
This will be very similar to the current Rescue Pump with a crew of between four and six. They will have a full range of heavy rescue equipment, a large pump and water carrying capacity as well as a specialist foam capability suitable for all types of fires.
Gallery
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St Mary's fire station, Southampton
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A fire in Eastleigh
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Sutton Scotney Water Tender
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Aerial Ladder Platform based at Southsea
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Statue outside of the Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service HQ in Eastleigh
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Statue outside of the Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service HQ in Eastleigh
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Statue outside of the Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service HQ in Eastleigh
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Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service tackles a car fire
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Left side of fire appliance
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Right side of fire appliance
See also
References
- ↑ Chief Fire officer of FRS
- ↑ Statutory FRS/area covered
- ↑ History of the service (creation/major changes)
- ↑ http://www.hantsfire.gov.uk/incidents-news-and-events/news/2015/police-begin-groundbreaking-move-to-fire-headquarters/
- ↑ http://www.hantsfire.gov.uk/about-us/a-safer-hampshire/the-challenge/
- ↑ http://www.hantsfire.gov.uk/EasySiteWeb/GatewayLink.aspx?alId=8716
- ↑ http://www.hantsfire.gov.uk/EasySiteWeb/GatewayLink.aspx?alId=8716