Friday 3 December 2021
Surrey Fire and Rescue is denying claims an elderly man’s death in a fire in East Horsley last week is down to the cuts being made
The Fire Brigades Union claims the first fire engine to the scene took 13 minutes to arrive.
The union says this was because nearby Painshill station was moved to daytime only cover at the start of the year.
The FBU says “fires tend to double in size every minute and our officials estimate the delay here was four minutes long.”
The changes to fire and rescue cover at Painshill were delivered as part of a new fire and rescue plan voted through in Surrey in 2019.
The plan included removing seven fire engines, removing night-time cover at three fire stations, and axing 70 firefighter jobs.
A spokesperson from Surrey Fire and Rescue Service said:
“The claim that if Painshill Fire Station was open at night the elderly gentleman would have survived is not true and is not based on any evidence.
This is a live and complex investigation, so we are unable to comment any further at this stage.
Our thoughts are with the gentleman’s family at this very sad time."
posted by Radio Jackie News Team @ 9:31 am
