Land-Rovers donated to vintage plane collection by Beds Fire

Pic captions:

(1) Cllr Sian Timoney, Chair of Bedfordshire & Luton Combined Fire Authority and Paul Fuller, Fire Chief of Bedfordshire and Luton Fire and Rescue Service pictured with members of the Airfield Voluntary Fire Service at Old Warden Aerodrome.

(2) CFO Paul Fuller takes off with Classic Wings

WHEELS OF FIRE AT D DAY AIR DISPLAY

Bedfordshire & Luton Fire and Rescue Service (BLFRS) joined forces with the Airfield Voluntary Fire Service at Old Warden Aerodrome on 6 th June when two fire appliances were handed over at the start of the D Day air display.

Ray Willett, Transport Manager of BLFRS, explained that the 4 wheel drive fire appliances were 20 years old and had become obsolete for use in today's modern fire and rescue service that needed to respond swiftly to incidents countywide and beyond. However the appliances are ideal for use at Old Warden where they will become part of the Voluntary Fire Service, with the added advantage of being able to reach incidents across rough terrain, such as wooded areas.

Councillor Sian Timoney, Chair of Bedfordshire and Luton Combined Fire Authority (CFA), said:

“The CFA get a lot of requests from different organisations, businesses and charities who want our old appliances. The CFA is keen for them to go to local groups so they can benefit local communities. We are delighted that we have been able to hand over these two fire appliances to the Voluntary Fire Service at Old Warden Aerodrome.

“Our focus is to keep fire appliances in local communities and with charitable organisations.”

Chief Fire Officer Paul Fuller of Bedfordshire and Luton Fire and Rescue Service (BLFRS) added:

“BLFRS is delighted to support the high level of commitment of the crew at Old Warden Aerodrome. It is good to see both services working together with the same aim of protecting the public whether at home, work or taking part in flying displays such as the D Day Air Display today.”

The Airfield Voluntary Fire Service is a charitable organization under the umbrella of the Civil Aviation Authority, who regularly check that exacting standards are being met.

The nature of aviation incidents means that response times need to be 2-3 minutes. Also trained in trauma care, the voluntary team can reach people who may be taken ill in the crowds that throng to the Air Displays and events.

The 25 strong volunteer operational and support team come from a wide range of professions including Social Workers, Police Officers and Retained Firefighters, who train at Biggleswade and Sandy Fire Stations, and Luton Airport.

Old Warden Aerodrome is part of the Shuttleworth Collection of historic aircraft and vehicles.

It's all uphill from now on, for Harrold Firefighters!

pic caption : L-R Front row - Watch Commander Richard Litson, Firefighter Charlie Daniels and Watch Commander James Bayliss get a push start from their colleagues at Harrold Fire Station.

Three firefighters from Harrold will be facing an uphill challenge in June, as they cycle over 1,000 miles and climb over 11,000 feet to raise money for The Firefighters Charity and Help The Heroes.

Watch Commander James Bayliss, Firefighter Charlie Daniels and Watch Commander Richard Litson will set off on their bikes from Harrold Fire Station on June 20 to ride to and then climb the three peaks of Ben Nevis, Scarfell Pike and Snowdon. Supported by Firefighter Peter Redman, who will driving the support van with spares and equipment.

“To date we have cycled 2,770 miles in various fundraisers. We have done Lands End to John O’Groats, both ways, and wanted to do something a bit different this year. We enjoy a challenge and this will certainly be a test of stamina!” said James.

Full details of their itinerary and how you can make a donation can be found at www.justgiving.com/jamescharliedick.

The challenge consists of a route of 1,150 miles leaving/returning to Harrold, Bedfordshire and climbing the three highest peaks in England, Scotland and Wales (Scarfell Pike, Ben Nevis and Snowdon) a total of 11,178 ft / 3407m.

20th June leave Harrold
20th Lincoln
21st Thirsk
22nd Jedburgh
23rd Perth
24th Fort William
25th Climb Ben Nevis
26th Kilmarnock
27th Keswick
28th Climb Scarfell Pike and onto Lancaster
29th Denbigh
30th Bets y coed and climb Snowdon
1 July Telford and finally 2 July back to Harrold.

Free smoke alarms for hard of hearing

Bedfordshire and Luton Fire and Rescue Service (BLFRS) and Bedfordshire Pilgrims Housing Association (bpha) are joining forces to keep residents safer.

bpha's maintenance team has been given training by the Fire and Rescue Service in carrying out Home Fire Safety Checks and fitting free smoke alarms for the hard of hearing.

While all bpha properties are fitted with siren smoke detectors, this is the first time that special alarms specifically designed for people with hearing problems have been installed. Along with a flashing light, the alarms link to a vibrating pad placed under the pillow should a fire occur while a resident is asleep.

Mr Anthony Ayres of Sir William Harpur House in Bedford was the first resident to receive a visit from BLFRS Fire Safety Officer Thomas Warner and a trio of bpha maintenance men. As well as fitting the special smoke alarm, they also gave Mr Ayres advice on general safety - such as not overloading plugs and taking care in the kitchen where many home fires start.

Northern Area Commander Tony Rogers said: “We want to keep people safe in their homes and we are doing just that by training bpha staff to fit smoke alarms for deaf people in their properties.”

“If there are others in the community that would like a Home Fire Safety Check from the firefighters, please contact the Northern Area Community Safety Team on 01234 845 000.”

Former BLFRS fire officer Les Carmichael, who now works for bpha, brought the two organisations together in this simple but effective partnership.

Les said: “We take the safety of our residents very seriously and we recognise that anyone with hearing difficulties could be more vulnerable in the event of a fire as they may not hear the alarm, particularly at night. We will continue to offer this service and will be working closely with the BLFRS to help reduce the risks of a fire developing in the home.”

About bpha
Bedfordshire Pilgrims Housing Association - now known simply as bpha - manages more than 15,000 homes and employs more than 300 staff. Since 1992, it has helped more than 5,000 families into home ownership and currently

29th - 30th June Fire & Rescue Show Harrogate

(click on image to enlarge)

BLFRS Fire Safety will be having a stand at this prestigious event to showcase one of the many successes of the organisation.

Group Commander Tim Birchall will be talking about a dynamic approach to fire risk reduction in schools which has resulted in a 75% cut in incidents since 2003:

“Maintaining Schools for the Future - a fire safety approach”

In July 2008 a project group was set up by BLFRS, Beds Police and three local authorities to encourage BB100 toolkit in existing schools,

BLFRS would produce a risk rating for schools, run free seminars for head teachers and governors, use results for a risk based audit programme under FSO and target highest risk schools via the School Crime and Arson Risk Evaluation (SCARE) project.

More than 250 schools were categorised as low, medium and high risk - and recommendations regarding sprinklers and other measures were made.

Long standing initiatives such as site agent training, fire risk assessment, fire safety consultation, meetings with LEA and H & S, education via Arson About and a special play with Biddenham Upper School were continued.

The result is a 75% reduction in school fires compared to 2003 - deliberate, accidental and small fires

To demonstrate the success of the project the team will be showing a video film by www.local-news.tv which includes interviews with partners and schools about how the activity has benefited them.

National Volunteers Week 1-7 June

Bedfordshire and Luton Fire and Rescue Service co-sponsored a special event to commemorate National Volunteers Week June 1st - June 7th.

On Tuesday 2nd June, Deputy Chief Fire Officer Robert Hull, and representatives of the Community Fire Safety Team, BLFRS Volunteers, Fire Cadets (Young Firefighters) and firefighters from stations joined a presentation evening at Beds Police HQ in Kempston.

Guest speaker was Tony Edwards of Volunteering England

www.volunteering.org.uk

Northern Area CFS Derek Hobbs was among those who made presentations. He said that BLFRS had 12 volunteers with more to come from the Polish community particularly. Work with the British Red Cross and the FESS vehicle was valuable for victims of fires and floods. A special award was made to Family Groups, an organisation to help women and their children from all backgrounds. As a result of the relationship with BLFRS more than 150 home fire safety checks had been carried out and more than 180 smoke detectors fitted.

Other speakers included Vince Hislop and Ch. Supt.Clare Simon from Bedfordshire Police who pointed to the work carried out by Special Police Officers and corporate volunteers.

Outside Police HQ was the SOS Bus from Luton which takes on board people who are at risk at night in the town centre. It is run by 40 volunteers and supported by various agencies - including BLFRS.

YOU THINK IT'S ALL OVER! - IT IS NOW

YOU THINK IT'S ALL OVER! - IT IS NOW.

That message with two photographs: the first showing a crowd celebrating in a bar and the second, a smashed car, is the theme of a World Cup safe driving campaign supported by Bedfordshire and Luton Fire and Rescue Service.

Bedford Borough Council, working with Central Bedfordshire Council and BLFRS, launched their campaign at the Interchange retail park in Kempston on 4th June.

Staff from JJB Sports got involved, wearing soccer kit for the photocall.

Matches at World Cup will be kicking off between midday and 7.30pm (BST) and there are concerns that could lead to people having a 'quick' couple of drinks and then driving.

Approximately 3,000 people are killed or seriously injured on roads in the UK each year in drink-drive related crashes and nearly one-in-six of all deaths on the road involve drivers who are over the legal limit.

BLFRS Northern Area Commander, Tony Rogers, said: "Firefighters rescue seven times as many people from wrecked cars as they do from burning buildings. Cutting deaths and injuries on the roads is a critical activity of the Fire and Rescue Service and we hope this joint campaign will help do just that."

The advertising idea came from Bedford Fire Station and was brought to life by the Community Safety team led by Derek Hobbs.

It has been used on leaflets, posters and bus backs for maximum effect.