Matt Wrack says the official report on a major wildfire incident is a damning indictment of the effect of cuts and failures of leadership
19 July 2022 will go down as one of the most memorable dates in the history of the London Fire Brigade (LFB).
It was certainly one of the busiest days in LFB’s history, when a pan-London major incident was declared due to wildfires.
Firefighters and emergency control staff yet again served the public with great fortitude. Major incidents were declared on the same day in 14 other fire and rescue services.
Last month, the LFB published a major incident review of the day. It revealed the scale of the challenge created by wildfires in the capital on 19 July 2022:
■ 2,496 calls to control
■ 359 incidents
■ 740 calls relating to grass alight
■ 1,198 mobilisations.
Around 500 members of the public were evacuated with the assistance of firefighters.
SAFETY FAILURES
The FBU is rightly proud of our members’ response to those wildfires. But the union also has a duty to examine the failure of principal managers to ensure our members can carry out their jobs safely.
The major incident review reveals a number of safety failures, which could have been foreseen and could have been avoided, had principal managers planned and prepared better than they did.
The report reveals there were 26 safety events on 19 July 2022. This included firefighters requiring hospitalisation and others treated for smoke inhalation. In one case, an incident commander was denied additional resources and rightly recorded this as a safety event, because the situation was “placing crews in danger of heat exhaustion or worse”.
Control staff were so overwhelmed by the volume of calls that a control emergency was declared, with off-duty staff coming in to assist with the response. Nevertheless, when incident commanders requested further make-ups, they were told appliances were not available.
At one point there were no fire rescue units, command units or fire investigation units available for control to send.
The report reveals that there were shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE) and that female firefighters were disproportionately impacted, twice as likely to be off the run because of no PPE.
SHORTAGE OF PERSONNEL
The major incident report confirms what the FBU said last year: “On 19 July 2022 the LFB had 39 appliances off the run because of insufficient staff”.
The report further admits that, in response, “the LFB has in place recruitment and promotion plans to address the establishment shortfall”.
In 2010, LFB had almost 6,000 wholetime firefighters and over 100 control staff. By 2022, the number of wholetime firefighters had been cut to just over 4,500. This means hundreds fewer firefighters on duty throughout the year and for peak periods like last year, on 19 July.
This is a damning indictment of more than a decade of austerity, ushered in by then London mayor Boris Johnson and implemented by Ron Dobson when he was London’s fire commissioner.
LFB principal management had not prepared adequately before the incident. It had no wildfire tactical advisers nor other officers specifically trained for wildfire intervention. The high volume pump at Hainault was away for its annual service.
The London fire commissioner’s latest assessment of risk (April 2022), had highlighted wildfire risk – but this should have been identified years before.
When incident commanders requested further make-ups, they were told appliances were not available. At one point there were no fire rescue units, command units or fire investigation units available
The lack of preparedness was not unique to the LFB. The deeper failure of leadership lay with the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC). Wildfires have been on the National Risk Register since 2013.
NFCC policy on wildfire is woefully inadequate. Its national operational learning action note, issued in 2021, stated that: “All fire and rescue services have a foreseeable wildfire risk.”
Yet the NFCC and its predecessors presided over the austerity cuts, including the loss of one in five firefighter jobs. The council provided ministers with political cover for attacks on the fire and rescue service.
Chief fire officers told the public they were prepared for anything and that they had the resources necessary and plans in place. They accused the FBU of scaremongering. They alone were in charge and therefore they must accept the responsibility for failing yet again in the face of foreseeable emergencies.
FBU SHUT OUT
The FBU has warned about the risks of wildfires, floods and climate change for decades. Yet the union is shut out of committees advising politicians. Ministers and the NFCC want to further exclude the FBU from channels of communication, guidance and policy making, despite the magnificent response of our members every time there is an emergency.
Their model is broken.
As we prepare for a general election, the coming months will be pivotal in deciding the future of our service. The FBU will set out its stall for proper investment and reform, and we will call on every member of the FBU to mobilise and make their voices heard.
