Alerter blog

Author: charley-farley-737

  • Fire – Corton Cliffs, Lowestoft

    For once the timing of my alerter going off was perfect. I'd just finished my spag bol and wiped up the last bit of juice with a piece of garlic bread when the alerter kicked into life. Oh well, the washing up will have to wait…

    When I jog through the appliance bay I'm met by the great and good of Red Watch (and Rachael) waiting to come on duty at 6pm.

    Ladder 1 is already out with Green Watch on board and there's just one light up for Ladder 2. A quick look at the tip sheet and it's Make Pumps 2 on Corton Cliffs in Lowestoft for an undergrowth fire. Just as everyone starts arriving, the bells go again. It's now Make Pumps 3 and the ERT is required.

    Not knowing how many we'll get turn in, I hang back and take the drivers tally on the ERT (NT06). Go to stick my fire kit in a locker only to be gentled reminded by the onlooking Red Watch that there is space for the drivers kit on the nearside of the appliance.

    Ladder 2 mobilises with a crew of five as we wait to get a full crew of six. Knowing the area we're going to it's always handy to have as many firefighterson a crew as possible. Dragging hose through undergrowth, establishing a water supply from the not-too-close hydrant all eats up resources.

    So, with a full complement on board, I head out into the early evening traffic.

    Section deleted here…

    We were about to turn into Corton Road for the long straight run to the fire when we were instructed to approach from the opposite end. So we carried on towards Yarmouth, past Tesco's, down Corton Long Lane and then back along the cliffs. I even had the chance to try out the three stage sirens – using the different settings depending on your distance from a 'hazard' – changing between each one by simply pressing on the road horn button situated on the steering wheel.

    With smoke drifting across the road I pulled up in the fend off position, even though the road was closed off behind us – can't be too careful especially with some of the numpties out there on the road!

    We extended the hosereel and then I ran out two lengths of 70 from Ladder 1 to us. A hydrant was being set into about 400 metres away going into Ladder 2, delivering to Ladder 1 and then finally to me on the ERT. Once the water supply was established, a 45 was run out on to the cliffs to enable the crew to blast the undergrowth and root out any hotspots.

    I had an early shower, courtesy of a stuck non-return valve on the collecting head of the tank fill. I'd plugged the 70 from Ladder 1 into the collecting head and given the 'water on' to Dave Ives only to be met with a torrent of water heading in my direction. Water off was my next request to Dave, funnily enough, as I stood there dripping just as ADO (or is it Group Manager now) Labdon strolled up. I think his immediate thought was that I'd f**ked up but not on this occasion… The non return valve had stuck in the open position allowing the water going in to the collecting head to come out just as quickly! Use of a Finger, Index, Mark 1 rectified the problem…

    Thankfully the fire was extinguished pretty quickly and we were able to head off after a quick wash down of the hose and other gear.

    And then home to face the congealed remainder of the spag bol and the washing up…

  • Suffolk’s firefighters have a busy few days…

    Already the month of May is proving to be a hectic one for Suffolk's firefighters.

    The unseasonably dry weather – we didn't even get April showers – has seen an unusually high number of grass / undergrowth fires in these last few days.

    Over the weekend the Unimog from Lowestoft has been to two major grassland / heathland fires. The largest of the two was at Thorpeness Golf Club which escalated to Make Pumps 10 as the fire spread across approximately 100 acres of the golf course. The incident was eating up Suffolk's resources as crews were being relieved by pumps from all over the county.

    The Unimog was used through at least three changes of crew which also meant that retained firefighters from Normanshurst were either standing by as a crew or making up numbers with the wholetime Watch.

    In the last week we've had 10 shouts – almost unheard of these days. And the same can be said of other stations within Suffolk, some getting a month worth of shouts in just a few days.

    And, with a fair few of these shouts coming in the middle of the night, most of us are hoping for a few quiet nights to catch up on our beauty sleep – and looking at our lot, they need quite a few quiet nights to catch up on their beauty sleep!

  • Fire in Thatched Barn, Bungay – Make Pumps 6

    Last Wednesday I'd only been in the office about ten minutes after doing a Learn and Live presentation when my faithful friend sprang into life, shattering the peace.

    I was fourth in and jumped in the back of our venerable Ladder 2 to hear that we were off to Bungay for a Make Pumps 6 shout. I heard the bit about a thatch but not that it was a thatched barn. So, with our crew of four – Mel Buck as OIC, Simon Reeves as driver and Al Soards and myself in the back – we chugged off towards Bungay.
    The ERT, with its superior speed and the fact that's it's 20 years younger than Ladder 2, was soon slip-streaming us before we'd even got as far as Beccles.

    As we neared Bungay we could see a pall of smoke rising above the Bungay – Halesworth Road. We pulled up outside the farm to find out what we needed to do. Already at the incident were Ladder 1 from Normanshurst, Beccles, Bungay, Loddon, Halesworth and Harleston. Shortly afterwards the Hydraulic Platform and support pump arrived from Great Yarmouth. By now the incident had been escalated to Make Pumps 10.

    As there was only one hydrant close to the farm, the water supply was critical. A water shuttle had already started with the Loddon pump filling up at a hydrant on a nearby housing estate. We joined in with Ladder 2 and the ERT. This still wasn't getting enough water to the fire ground so Mel arranged for us to take over Bury's Ladder 1 (which was at the incident as support pump to Bury's Forward Control Vehicle). I drove Bury's pump, heading for Bungay Fire Station along with the Loddon pump to fill up from their hydrant. Now, with two pumps at each hydrant, we were filling up and forming a queue back at the farm, ready to dump our tanks into either the Beccles or Bungay pumps.

    An assistance message had also been put in for the water bowser from Framlingham (Framlingham 09). This has a capacity of around 8000 litres – nearly five times what one of the fire engines can carry. The two man crew set up their dam and dumped their water into this. They then used the hydrant at the fire station while the rest of us reverted back to the hydrant in the estate.

    With the dam in place, the Bungay pump took a supply from this to then feed the main jets on the fire ground. As we pulled up we'd sit there and fill the dam as and when it's level dropped.

    Refreshments magically appeared in the back of a car – homemade sandwiches, crisps, tea and coffee. A godsend, as the time must now have been past 3pm and my stomach had thought my throat had been cut! I've no idea who our culinary saviour was but a big thank you for feeding in excess of 60 firefighters, it really is appreciated…

    Soon after this we headed back to Lowestoft via the cross country route. And on such a glorious day it was nice to be chauffered about in our very own charabanc.

    Back at Normanshurst we thought we'd be getting away at 6pm when the night Watch took over. No. They were heading straight out to the job and we'd be on standby, covering the town, possibly till 10pm.

    Thankfully Lil, our station cook, had dug out a chicken curry from the freezer. We nuked this and, together with a plate of chips, a meal was created…

    And, an hour earlier than expected, we got away at 9pm. So with a shout at 7.15 in the morning, a Learn and Live presentation and then this prolonged shout, I'd spent something like 13 hours in the service of Suffolk Fire and Rescue. That's not a problem… The problem arises when you get back to your normal job next day and have to play catch up…


  • Fire in tumble drier – Beckham Road, Lowestoft

    You can’t even have a Tom Tit these days without your Alerter making you shut up shop early and leave the paperwork till later! I think you get the idea…


    Anyway it was two pumps to Beckham Road in Lowestoft for a fire in a tumble drier. Not much for us to do when we eventually got there in our old bus (we’ve got a reserve pump while ours is receiving TLC). In fact it’s that slow that two mobility scooters and a learner driver overtook us on the way to the job!


    Back just before 8am and time for me to rush home, get changed into uniform and back to the fire station in time to leave at 8.15 for a Learn and Live presentation at Benjamin Britten High School.


    And this was only the start of what proved to be a long day with Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service…




  • Chemical incident with firefighter ‘injured’ – it’s just a training night!

    We were all set for a talk from the police accident investigator but this was cancelled because, you've guessed it – he'd had an accident. Hopefully not a bad one but enough to mean the talk had to be called off.

    So we attended a chemical incident instead on the front grass at Normanshurst.

    Ladder 2 turned out first to reports of children that had collapsed close to some drums of chemicals.

    A BA team from Ladder 2 (Rachael and Peter Read) carried out a snatch rescue while the rest of the crew started to prepare for the full chemical circus.

    We arrived on the ERT and helped to cordon off the area – hot, warm and cold, put together the decontamination dam, laid out the hosereel, buckets, brushes, emergency air supply from 2 BA sets, four Gas Tight Suits (GTS), paperwork – the list goes on…

    The first GTS team of 'Cheesey' Armes and Jason Balls were committed to the scene to get more information about the leaking chemical. They were closely followed by the second GTS team of Paul 'Nubbs' Newberry and Peter Read. The second team would be relaying the chemical information back to BAECO so that more details could be gleaned about the chemical and its potential dangers.

    Part way through the exercise Jason, at a signal from Mel, collapsed in a heap with an Oscar winning performance. The other 3 GTS wearers initially just stood there and stared at the crumbled heap of yellow plastic on the grass in front of them. Then, galvanised into action, they reported back to BAECO that they had a 'firefighter down' and proceeded to drag Jason towards the decontamination area.

    The rescue of Jason wasn't easy. For a start moving in a GTS isn't very easy let alone trying to grip a lifeless form in another GTS and carry him 50m to the decontamination area. The plastic viewing panels were steaming up as Cheesey, Nubbs and Peter burnt some calories lugging their casualty to safety. Every so often you'd see an arm swipe across the plastic window like a windscreen wiper just to give them a glimpse of where they were heading.

    And finally they made it. With much hilarity for the onlookers, Jason was dumped, unceremoniously into the dam. And while he was being taken care of by the decontamination team we had to give the emergency supply of air to two of the rescue party.

    Once all four GTS wearers had been washed down and stripped of their GTS suits we had a quick debrief before making all the equipment up.

    Not sure what all the passing motorists thought of this spectacle unfolding before their eyes – Gas Tight Suits, decontamination, casualties… Perhaps they thought that we were rehearsing for when / if swine flu finds its way into sleepy old Suffolk!

    It was a good drill, everyone enjoyed it and got something out of it and, more importantly, it makes the two hour training night go so much more quickly…


  • When will firefighter find time to blog?

    Apologies to all my regular readers – yes, there is more than one of you!


    It’s been a busy few days both at work and with dear old Suffolk Fire and Rescue. So, bear with me, and I’ll be posting soon with news of a chemical drill from Tuesday night, a tumble drier fire on Wednesday morning and a farm fire near Bungay that was a spotters paradise, with all sorts of fire engines from Suffolk and Norfolk and a few specials too…


    And just a mini rant… I followed an Aston Martin DB9 in to work this morning. That’s got to be worth around £100k. Bugger me… they don’t even come with indicators! Perhaps they were an optional extra…


    Have also started sneezing… Perhaps that bacon roll was feeling a tad peeky…




  • Firefighters rescue seagull…

    We’ve been on standby today, covering for Green Watch as they spent the day in Sudbury doing a water rescue exercise.


    So a motley crew was ready and waiting to save Lowestoft – Ian ‘Billy’ McMillan, myself driving, Greg Osborne, Jason Balls and Richard ‘Shambles’ Lambert.


    Our planned tasks for the day were: standard tests on Ladder 2, remove all the equipment from Ladder 2 and give all the lockers a pressure wash, clean the gear and the pump, a Home Fire Safety Check and an RTC drill incorporating checks on the air bags.


    The morning went as planned with the majority of standard tests done, all the lockers stripped, pressure washed and the pump sitting in the sun to dry off.


    The reason for all this Spring cleaning was because we have taken delivery of a reserve pump as our vehicle has gone away for some serious TLC and pampering. The pump that was delivered to us, an old J-reg, was in quite a sorry state. White Watch had given it a good clean on the outside and now we were hitting the lockers and the crew cab.


    After tea break we headed off for a Home Fire Safety check for an elderly lady who lives alone. Shambles and Jason did the honours and felt that the lady was well prepared and knowledgable about safety in the home – she just wanted to be reassured that all was well.


    Just as we clambered off the pump and headed in the direction of our food the bells went. Automatic Fire Alarm (AFA) at the Premier Inn on Yarmouth Road. Within a few minutes we pulled up close to the entrance with Billy and Jason going in to investigate. No sign of fire. The alarm had been caused by dust from cleaning – False Alarm Equipment 1. Either they’ve now got a very thorough cleaner or that room hadn’t been dusted for ages!


    Back on station for a late lunch and then back to Ladder 2 and its spruce up.


    Wasn’t long before the bells went again. This time it was to a seagull trapped in a tree by some fishing line. I drove Ladder 1 through the narrow gateway and past the front of the museum that sits in the centre of Nicholas Everetts Park. Then a traipse through the park with the 9m ladder, the 30m General Purpose line, bow saw and a salvage sheet.


    It took a couple of attempts to pitch the ladder in the right place to allow reasonable access to the seagull. Greg took the line and the bow saw aloft and secured the branch the seagull was on before cutting it with the bow saw. The jiggling of the branch seemed to free the seagull and it then perched itself on a lower branch. By shaking that branch Greg was able to dislodge the seagull who then swooped down on to the grass. The RSPCA inspector was then able to corner the injured bird and get it safely into a cage.


    Hopefully the small audience that we attracted were mildly impressed by our display of ladders, lines and cunning plans… If they were they didn’t show it!


    We’d just got the kit stowed back on Ladder 1 when Control called on the radio to see if we were available – a sure sign that we were about to get a Fire Priority. I then started to get us turned around while Billy waited for the Fire Priority message that was sure to follow. Instead Control told us we’d been called in error and that Clifton were attending.


    By the time we got back on station we only had time to get all the equipment back on Ladder 2 before Green Watch rolled up in the Water Rescue van. So our best laid plans for the day had gone out of the window… or should that be up a tree?




  • Firefighters fight ‘fire’ in the fog…

    Last night was one of those rare occasions when we get off station to do some drilling…


    Two pumps headed down to the old North Denes caravan site to fight a simulated house fire – actually a boarded up toilet / shower block.


    Ladder 2, with Ian ‘Billy’ McMillan in charge, were the first pump in and got a hosereel onto the ‘fire’. Almost immediately Billy made up for another pump to assist with the water supply.


    We turned up on Ladder 1 and set about running a line of 70 from us to Ladder 2, supplementing our tank from a hydrant that was about four lengths away. I think it was nine or ten lengths of 70 to get over to Ladder 2 – and as the line got longer firefighters were disappearing into the thickening fog…


    With a reasonable supply, the Ladder 2 crew were able to get two main jets working, one through a monitor.


    Then we had a ‘failure’ of the Ladder 1 pump. We made a dam at the midway point along the line of 70 and let this start filling from the less than adequate hydrant. Four of us then lugged the LPP (Lightweight, Portable Pump – neither lightweight or particulary portable!) the 150 metres from Ladder 2 to the now filling Fire Service paddling pool. We were then able to pump water on up the line to Ladder 2, but were quickly over-running the supply from the hydrant.


    And after a few minutes of this we got the ‘knock off’ from Mel. A short debrief in the gathering gloom was followed by a pretty brisk make up, especially as the clock was moving swiftly towards 2100hrs and the end of drill night.


    These simulated incidents / off-site drills make our training more realistic – not just squirting water at the drill tower with a good hydrant just feet away. We also get seen by the public, our customers, which generates interest and the chance to have a chat with them – again far better than us being hidden away on the drill yard. And, finally, the time goes much quicker. Two hours spent in the classroom on the Scottish Modules or fannying around on station really does make the clock stand still…




  • Firefighters receive Smurf hats

    No this isn't an April Fool joke that's running late.

    We've all been given these soft blue bags for storing our shiny helmets in. They have a little drawstring to pull tight and keep your helmet safe from all those nasty things that might scratch it or mark it in some way. There's even a little white name badge where we can write our names – just like in infant school with your plimsoll bag…

    And, as we are meant to wear the helmets at all times, then it seems the logical move is to wear the helmet while it's still in the bag. Our heads are protected by the helmet and the helmet is protected by the Smurf hat - a simple yet effective interpretation of the latest edict eminating from [wording deleted] Endeavour House…

    To be honest, when we all traipse out holding our Man (sorry, Person) Bag, it looks like we're all off for a spot of ten pin bowling!


  • Retained Firefighters provide cover for Lowestoft

    Last Wednesday a crew of five retained firefighters provided fire cover for Lowestoft - Red Watch had a day out in Sudbury for a Water Rescue exercise.

    The town was in the 'safe' hands of Mel Buck, John Hubbard, Al Soards, Richard 'Shambles' Lambert and me.

    We started off the day getting standard tests done on Ladder 2 and the PRT – weeklies, monthlies and quarterlies…

    After tea-break Mel had lined up a couple of BA drills for us, ostensibly for us to get a BA wear in using the new helmets before we actually wear them at a job.

    The first drill was just a simple moving in darkness wear following a guideline in the smoke house. The wear wasn't demanding but it did give us the chance to don up, adjust the new helmets and get a feel for how they differ from the old Cromwells when crawling, climbing etc in BA.

    The second drill was set to simulate us turning up at a job. We pulled up at a derelict building and were informed that there may be children inside as they were known to build dens in there.

    When Mel and John did their 360 of the building they found a casualty hanging out of a first floor window. We did a confined pitch of the nine metre ladder and Shambles 'rescued' the casualty.

    Then it was me and Shambles in BA to do search and rescue on the ground floor, with entry through one of the front windows. Shambles went as Number 1 carrying the branch, with me following carrying the door enforcer. I pulled in a good length of hosereel and then we set off following the left hand wall. Fairly quickly we made our way right around the ground floor, back to our entry point. We then had a message from BAECO that there was a den in the middle of the building that would need to be searched.

    We retraced our steps until we found an opening into the den. There then followed a tight maze of the metal cage walls. Entry to a section was either through a doorway or a 'window' section. Having weaved our way through most of the maze we informed BAECO that we were at our turnround time and were making our way out.

    I think my arms were a couple of inches longer after lugging the door enforcer round with me!

    With the smoke cleared we took at look at the route we took. It always seem so much further when you're shuffling along in thick smoke… And we'd been on a real twisting and turning route.

    The new helmets with BA had worked well, so at least I know what to expect when we get a job.

    And we wound down the day with some home fire safety checks, culminating in Al and Richard making the day of two old ladies – 'Oh young man!'