Firefighters across the UK held a minute’s silence today in honour of the firefighters and people who lost their lives in an explosion in Beirut on Tuesday.
Firefighters stood outside of their stations at midday to remember over 149 people who were killed in the tragic incident, which included a crew of firefighters who responded to the initial fire.
Labour MPs including Bell Ribeiro-Addy, Afzal Khan, and Helen Hayes joined firefighters outside their stations to pay their respects and stand in solidarity with the people of Lebanon.
The FBU has written to the Lebanese government to send their condolences to the families who lost their loved ones in the tragedy, and to applaud the work of emergency service personnel who are working in the aftermath of the incident.
Matt Wrack, FBU general secretary, said:
“The scenes from Beirut are devastating and the thoughts of firefighters across the UK are with those who have lost loves ones and the many thousands who are injured.
“Each day, firefighters are first on the scene responding to fires and other incidents in the knowledge that, should something go wrong, they may never return. What happened in Beirut is the stuff of nightmares.
“The firefighter family is international and we mourn for the brothers and sisters in Beirut we have lost.”
