Meeting to be held on 24 June 2024
Contact for further information – Assistant Chief Fire Officer Jon Charters
Tel: 01772 866802
Executive SummaryThis report provides Members with information relating to operational incidents of interest since the last report to the Authority.
Recommendation(s)The Authority is asked to note the report.
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This report provides Members with information relating to operational incidents of interest. This has been a busy operational period, therefore the report details only the larger deployments or more complex incidents attended. As a result, some incidents that Members have been made aware of locally, may not form part of the report.
The following summarises the incidents with further detail provided within the body of the paper:
- Eight fire engines attend a commercial building fire in Blackburn (6/4/2024)
- Fatal building fire in Thornton Cleveleys (19/4/2024)
- Six fire engines tackle a commercial building fire in Poulton (23/4/2024)
- Person struck by Train in Parbold (25/4/2024)
- Firefighters respond to wildfire in Bacup (30/4/2024)
- Firefighters respond to fatal RTC on the M58 (17/5/2024)
- Firefighters respond to fatal RTC in Whitewell Bottom, Rossendale (19/5/2024)
- Firefighters respond to reports of a person trapped in a cave in Leck (20/5/2024)
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E71 Blackburn |
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Date: |
6 April 2024 |
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Time: |
19:36 |
Eight fire engines from Blackburn, Hyndburn, Darwen, Bamber Bridge, Burnley, Fulwood, Penwortham, and Preston, together with two Aerial Ladder Platforms (ALP’s) from Preston and Hyndburn, a Command Unit from Fulwood, and a Water Tower from Blackburn, attended a commercial building fire at Witton Business Park off Preston Old Road, Blackburn.
The incident involved a commercial property approximately 70m x 50m in size that was well alight when the crews arrived. Firefighters used six hose reel jets, two ALP’s, and a Water Tower to extinguish the fire.
Roads in the surrounding area were closed by the Police. The cause of the fire was recorded as deliberate, spreading from a fire in a nearby derelict building.
Firefighters were on scene damping down and conducting the fire investigation for 9 days. This included a search of the area with the LFRS victim recovery dog, as it could not be confirmed that there were no persons in the building at the time of the fire.
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LFRS station area: |
N32 Fleetwood |
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Date: |
19 April 2024 |
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Time: |
12:57 |
Four fire engines from Blackpool, Bispham and Fleetwood were mobilised to Oxendale Road in Thornton Cleveleys to reports of a gas leak. On conducting investigations of the property, firefighters discovered that this was in fact a building fire and people could be trapped inside.
Fire crews forced access to the property and found a casualty lying behind the door. The casualty was brought out into the open air and given CPR and first aid by fire crews. They were handed over to the air ambulance and land paramedics when they arrived, who continued giving lifesaving treatment on the Ambulance.
Firefighters wearing breathing apparatus and firefighting jets dealt with the incident. Unfortunately, the incident proved to be fatal. Fire crews were at the scene for over four hours, whilst the investigation was completed. The cause of the fire was recorded as accidental and attributed to a faulty gas fire.
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LFRS station area: |
W30 Blackpool |
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Date: |
23 April 2024 |
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Time: |
19:11 |
Six fire engines from Blackpool, Bispham, South Shore, Fleetwood, Wesham, and the Aerial Ladder Platform (ALP) from Blackpool, responded to a commercial building fire on Aldon Road, Poulton Industrial Estate in Poulton-le-Fylde. They were supported by the Drone, Water Bowser and Command Unit.
The fire involved a building of two floors, approximately 20m x 20m in size. The fire was tackled by firefighters wearing breathing apparatus using firefighting water jets. The ALP was used to tackle the fire from outside.
Crews were at the scene fighting the fire and conducting the fire investigation for approximately thirty-six hours. The fire started in an office area on the 1st floor, with the entire building being damaged by fire, heat and/or smoke. The cause of the fire has been recorded as unknown pending further investigations by the police.
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LFRS station area: |
S56 Skelmersdale |
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Date: |
25 April 2024 |
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Time: |
19:40 |
Fire crews from Ormskirk and Skelmersdale were called to reports that a person had been hit by a train near to Parbold railway station. On arrival it was confirmed that a female dog walker had been struck by a train and the incident was fatal.
Fire crews worked with Police and Ambulance to make the scene safe and assisted with the removal of the casualty from the hazardous area to the awaiting undertaker.
Crews were on scene for just over two hours.
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LFRS station area: |
P73 Bacup |
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Date: |
30 April 2024 |
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Time: |
18:06 |
The wildfire team from Bacup and Rawtenstall attended a fire near to Lee Mill Quarry in Bacup. The incident involved approximately eight acres of moorland. The team used two Hagglund 4x4 vehicles and wildfire equipment, and were able to contain the fire within three hours, negating the requirement for the attendance of several additional fire engines.
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LFRS station area: |
S51 Ormskirk |
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Date: |
17 May 2024 |
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Time: |
12:54 |
Fire crews were called to reports of an RTC on the M58, junction 3 eastbound. The reports were that there had been a collision between two HGV’s and a car, with all three vehicles on fire with the car driver trapped.
The incident was attended by fire engines from Ormskirk, Skelmersdale, Preston, the Foam Unit from Leyland and Urban Search and Rescue from Bamber Bridge and Chorley. It was feared that one of the HGV’s was carrying unknown chemicals, so a Hazardous Materials and Environmental Protection Advisor also attended, along with several other Flexible Duty Officers conducting a variety of roles.
The Police declared this a ‘major incident’ due to the fatality, full closure of the motorway and the potential for a large quantity of chemicals to be involved.
The fire was quickly extinguished and it was confirmed that the tanker was in fact clean of any chemicals. A multi-agency meeting took place and it was decided that the vehicle should be removed from the scene and taken away for full police investigation.
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LFRS station area: |
P74 Rawtenstall |
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Date: |
19 May 2024 |
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Time: |
03:02 |
Fire engines from Burnley, Bacup and Rawtenstall were mobilised to reports of a serious RTC on Burnley Road East, Whitewell Bottom. Two vehicles had collided and hit parked vehicles; one of the vehicles was on its roof on top of a stationary vehicle. Three casualties were trapped in this car, with the driver being confirmed fatal. The other two casualties had significant entrapment. Fire crews used stabilisation equipment to make the scene safer, whilst paramedics worked on the seriously injured casualties.
Our crews used a large amount of hydraulic cutting equipment and saws, to release the live casualties. Once all casualties were released, the police conducted a detailed investigation due to the seriousness of the incident. Fire crews remained on scene and were responsible for releasing the deceased person. Fire crews were involved at the scene for over eight hours.
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LFRS station area: |
N16 Hornby |
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Date: |
20 May 2024 |
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Time: |
19:56 |
Fire crews from Hornby and Morecambe, the Aerial Ladder Platform from Morecambe, Urban Search and Rescue from Chorley and Bamber Bridge, along with the Drone attended reports of a person trapped in a mine at Leck Fell Road, Leck. A Mountain Rescue Team, Cave Rescue Team, Police and Ambulance also formed the response.
A coordinated approach was established to support Cave Rescue and Mountain Rescue in searching the caves and potholes for the missing person. The drone was used to thermally scan the area for any signs of the casualty.
In total, sixteen caves were searched by specialist teams who were unable to locate any casualties. LFRS were in attendance for around five hours.
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Potential impact on local environment in relation to operational incidents. Significant incidents benefit from the attendance of specialist water towers (stingers) and the hazardous materials unit both of which have positive impacts on firefighting operations and reduce environmental impacts.
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Will the proposal(s) involve the processing of personal data? No
If the answer is yes, please contact a member of the Democratic Services Team to assist with the appropriate exemption clause for confidential consideration under part 2 of the agenda.
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