Shropshire fire service boat crew praised for flooding response in Yorkshire
Firefighters from Shropshire were called to Yorkshire to help the local brigade deal with severe flooding.
Chief Fire Officer Rod Hammerton said the national emergency command requested a boat crew from Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service on Thursday, November 7.
He said they initially wanted to hold their boat back because of concerns about the weather in their own county, but ultimately decided that the vehicle would not be required in Shropshire and could assist their northern colleagues.
Mr Hammerton told a fire authority committee meeting that Shropshire was, luckily, able to spare the boat, and had been “strangely fortunate” throughout the week when rivers in Barnsley and Doncaster flooded and Sheffield saw a month’s worth of rain in just 36 hours.
Assets
Deputy Chief Fire Officer Andy Johnson said the boat and crew, who are on the NRAT list of assets available to other areas in an emergency, were in South Yorkshire from the early hours of Friday morning until Tuesday.
Officer Hammerton said: “We’ve been strangely fortunate that the pivot of the weather seemed to miss us.
“That meant we could be deployed up in Yorkshire.”
Committee chairman Chris Mellings congratulated the fire service's staff for their work both at home and in Yorkshire.
Heavy rain in Shropshire saw flood warnings issued on the Severn and Teme rivers, along with school closures and the suspension of the Shrewsbury-to-Welshpool rail service.
