Shropshire firefighter calls for problem level crossing to be sorted

Gary France, 29, who is based at Wem Fire Station, said he is concerned about the potentially life-threatening situation it could put people in when they wait for the emergency services.

Mr France said he was stuck at the level crossing in Wem for more than 15 minutes at the weekend.

He said: "I went through the other day, I wasn't working but just passing through, and I was sat there for 15 minutes before turning round.

"After going back to check 55 minutes later the barriers were still stuck down with an even bigger queue.

"As a concerned member of the emergency services this problem could cost lives by the delay in response time."

And with members of the public regularly complaining about the level crossing on Aston Street, Mr France has said something needs to be done about it.

He said: "If we need to get to a property the other side of the crossing, it will delay us.

"When the barriers are down we need to let someone know that it could cause a delay, because it's life or death situations sometimes.

"It's not just fire services, it could be ambulances or anything.

"It's our route out of Wem towards Prees and if something did happen because of it, it would be horrific."

Councillors and local people have regularly highlighted the dangers of the crossing, and have called for Network Rail to do something about it "before it's too late".

Mayor of Wem, Mandy Meakin said: "Safety is really an issue for us.

"It's the thought of a child getting fed up waiting and going across anyway, and the fact emergency services could be stuck on either side.

"If there was a fire in Soulton Road or at the caravan park, well they might have to go all the way round and avoid the crossing.

"Network Rail needs to sort it out, we have contacted them countless times and they have said it's sorted, but we keep having these problems."

During previous incidents with the level crossing when it has been closed for hours Network Rail has apologised for the inconvenience and said that the company is hoping to find a date that councillors could discuss problems with the rail operating team.

No-one from Newtwork Rail was available for comment today.