Heated meeting in Warwick over fire station closure

Kevin Unitt

09 October 2009

FIRE chiefs were accused of playing with people's lives at a fiery public meeting over plans to close Warwick fire station.
About 100 residents, many wearing 'save our fire station' t-shirts or holding placards carrying a similar message, filled the hall at Myton School on Monday night (October 5) for two hours of heated debate on the proposals.
Fire and county council chiefs, who took to the stage to chair the meeting, were left in no further doubt as to local feeling as giggles and snorts of derision met their use of the term 'improvement plan' to describe the scheme.
Assistant county fire officer Glen Ranger insisted the service had to change to be better and added investment in training and fire prevention measures would lessen the risks to the public, also stressing the plans would see no cut in the overall budget.
The first Warwick resident to respond was John Holland, a former mayor of the town, who said: “We had all of this two years ago, when thousands of people signed a petition against closing our fire station, so why on earth have you come back with the idea again when it is clearly not wanted?
“There is only two bridges between Leamington and Warwick, both choked with traffic much of the time.”
Myton Road resident Tim Griffiths accused fire bosses of 'blinding people with science' over the figures used in their reports.
Warwick and Leamington MP James Plaskitt followed this theme by asking: “Why, in the report, does it say there have been 1,231 incidents dealt with in the last five years by Warwick fire station, when I have been to check the log book there and found there to have been 2,026?
“Warwick is, in fact, the busiest retained station in the south of the county.”
On the night Mr Plaskitt also added more names to the 3,800 plus people already to have signed petition calling for the station to be saved.
Mr Ranger responded by saying the 1,231 probably related to incidents within the town of Warwick itself, adding: “I am a firefighter, this is my profession, and we have no axe to grind.
“We simply would not be looking to do this if we did not believe it would improve the service and save lives.”
A shout from the back of the room of “cuts cost lives!” suggested the public would need more convincing.
“Heaven forbid there be a fire at Shire Hall” added another, in reference to the home of the county council in the centre of town.
This quip was followed by an emotional speech from a Kenilworth man, who himself had been left injured in a house fire in 1995, concluding: “If even one of these stations closes then hang your heads in shame.”
Warwick south town councillor Anne Mellor suggested Richard Hobbs, the county council's community safety chief sitting on stage, forego any pay rises in order to find the £110,000 per year needed to keep Warwick fire station open.
Chris Wood from the Fire Brigade's Union called the plans “scandalous”, adding: “This is more a suicide pact than a consultation process.
“It's been said that it's not enough to just disagree with the plans. Why? Why can't people just disagree?”
He also slammed what he called 'loaded questions' in the consultation document, leaving little option for varied answers.
Another Warwick resident asked: “What happens if there is a fire to be attended in Leamington, and one at the same time in Warwick?” to which Mr Ranger eventually replied: “We will do what we do now, and cover it from other areas.”
Next to speak was new chief fire officer for Warwickshire Graeme Smith, facing a difficult first day in the job, who said: “The views expressed tonight have certainly put things in the front of my mind which I perhaps hadn't considered before.”
Later, when a resident demanded fire chiefs 'do the right thing' by keeping Warwick fire station open, Mr Smith quietly nodded as if the strength of feeling had registered.
Warwickshire firefighter Paul Nickford spoke next to ask how it could be possible to 'deplete' the service and still provide adequate cover, adding: “Is it going to be my life at risk? Or my colleague's? Or a member of the public's?”
Mr Ranger, who responded to many of the safety concerns of residents by saying responses would not change – still remaining ten minutes in town centre areas and 15 minutes in rural areas.
When put to him that response times to fires had never been improved anywhere after cuts, he added: “Perhaps we'll be the first.”
Karen Scarrott, an independent Warwick councillor and town resident, drew the loudest cheers of the night with a passionate speech dedicated to her daughter Jade, who was killed in a road accident in 2004 and had been attended by fire crews.
She said: “We must not put cuts above lives. How on earth can you prioritise if there is an incident in Leamington and at the same time one in Warwick?
“I will not rest until these plans are thrown out once again.”
Chris White, Conservative prospective parliamentary candidate for Warwick and Leamington, added: “People don't like being treated like fools.
“They feel safer and happier with a station so please leave it well alone.”
Mr Ranger insisted “our minds can be changed” on the closure plans.
And Alan Cockburn, the county council's environment chief, wrapped up proceedings by insisting: “This is not a done deal.”

* People can make their views known by:
- Visiting www.warwickshire.gov.uk/fire-consultation
- Emailing fireandrescue@warwickshire.gov.uk
- Writing to Warwickshire Fire & Rescue Service, Improvement Plan Consultation, Service HQ, Warwick Street, Leamington CV32 5LH

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