Freedom of information requests by the BBC have revealed the devastating impact of understaffing on Essex fire and rescue service.
Crews are frequently moved around the region in an attempt to plug dangerous gaps in fire cover.
The service was found to have moved firefighters from their usual bases to other stations in the county on 2,570 occasions in 2023. There were 304 fire engines moved in August, with 301 in October and 278 in December.
The inspectorate rated the service as “heavily reliant” on firefighter overtime in its latest report. Meanwhile, an increase in extreme weather events has piled pressure on the service, which reported its busiest 24 hours in its history due to the heatwave of 2022.
Instead of spending on trying to plug the gaps in a failing model, fire and rescue services should be investing in their workforces...
With one in five firefighter jobs cut since 2010, this picture is replicated across the UK.
Riccardo la Torre, FBU national officer, said: “Fire and rescue services shouldn’t have to move fire engines and firefighters around vast distances while scrambling to provide adequate protection for the public.
“Instead of spending on trying to plug the gaps in a failing model, fire and rescue services should be investing in their workforces and calling for a reversal of the 30% cut to central government funding.”
