Kent Fire and Rescue Service - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Kent Fire and Rescue Service is the statutory fire and rescue service

Fire service in the United Kingdom

The fire services in the United Kingdom operate under separate legislative and administrative arrangements in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales...

for the county

County

A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain modern nations. Historically in mainland Europe, the original French term, comté, and its equivalents in other languages denoted a jurisdiction under the sovereignty of a count A county is a jurisdiction of local government in certain...

of Kent

Kent

Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...

covering a geographical area south of London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

, to the coast and including major shipping routes via the Thames and Medway

River Medway

The River Medway, which is almost entirely in Kent, England, flows for from just inside the West Sussex border to the point where it enters the Thames Estuary....

rivers. The total coastline covered is 225 km (139.8 mi); it has 67 fire station

Fire station

A fire station is a structure or other area set aside for storage of firefighting apparatus , personal protective equipment, fire hose, fire extinguishers, and other fire extinguishing equipment...

s, and 4 district fire safety

Fire safety

Fire safety refers to precautions that are taken to prevent or reduce the likelihood of a fire that may result in death, injury, or property damage, alert those in a structure to the presence of a fire in the event one occurs, better enable those threatened by a fire to survive, or to reduce the...

offices. The FRS provides emergency cover to a population of nearly 2 million.

The area meets the boundaries of the London Fire Brigade

London Fire Brigade

The London Fire Brigade is the statutory fire and rescue service for London.Founded in 1865, it is the largest of the fire services in the United Kingdom and the fourth-largest in the world with nearly 7,000 staff, including 5,800 operational firefighters based in 112 fire...

to the north of the county, Surrey

Surrey Fire and Rescue Service

The Surrey Fire and Rescue Service is the statutory fire and rescue service for the County of Surrey, England, with 24 fire stations. It comes under the administrative and legislative control of Surrey County Council, who fund the service by collecting a precept via council tax, and from central...

to the north west and East Sussex

East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service

The East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service is the statutory fire and rescue service for the county of East Sussex and city of Brighton and Hove. It is funded via the Council Tax.East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service has 24 fire stations.-East Sussex Wholetime:...

to the south west of Kent.

History

The first fire brigade appeared in Kent

Kent

in 1802 when the Kent Fire Office formed an insurance

Insurance

In law and economics, insurance is a form of risk management primarily used to hedge against the risk of a contingent, uncertain loss. Insurance is defined as the equitable transfer of the risk of a loss, from one entity to another, in exchange for payment. An insurer is a company selling the...

brigade in Deptford

Deptford

Deptford is a district of south London, England, located on the south bank of the River Thames. It is named after a ford of the River Ravensbourne, and from the mid 16th century to the late 19th was home to Deptford Dockyard, the first of the Royal Navy Dockyards.Deptford and the docks are...

(which was at the time part of Kent). In the same year, and completely separately from insurance

Insurance

companies, Hythe

Hythe, Kent

Hythe , is a small coastal market town on the edge of Romney Marsh, in the District of Shepway on the south coast of Kent. The word Hythe or Hithe is an Old English word meaning Haven or Landing Place....

became the first town in Kent

Kent

to set up its own fire brigade, followed by Ashford

Ashford, Kent

Ashford is a town in the borough of Ashford in Kent, England. In 2005 it was voted the fourth best place to live in the United Kingdom. It lies on the Great Stour river, the M20 motorway, and the South Eastern Main Line and High Speed 1 railways. Its agricultural market is one of the most...

in 1826.

By the 20th century, it was quite fashionable for local authorities to have their own fire brigades. Maidstone

Maidstone

Maidstone is the county town of Kent, England, south-east of London. The River Medway runs through the centre of the town linking Maidstone to Rochester and the Thames Estuary. Historically, the river was a source and route for much of the town's trade. Maidstone was the centre of the agricultural...

had seen the formation of its borough fire brigade in 1901 when the Royal Insurance Company provided a new Shand Mason horse-drawn steam fire engine, named The Queen. This company had taken over the Kent Fire Office in the same year, simultaneously disbanding their own brigade. Things often became very competitive between individual town and village brigades, in many instances, each one trying to outdo its neighbour. In 1910, Bromley

Bromley

Bromley is a large suburban town in south east London, England and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Bromley. It was historically a market town, and prior to 1963 was in the county of Kent and formed the administrative centre of the Municipal Borough of Bromley...

became the first town in Kent to house motorised fire engines, with two new Merryweather

Merryweather & Sons

Merryweather & Sons of Clapham, later Greenwich, London, were builders of steam fire engines and steam tram engines.The founder was Moses Merryweather of Clapham, who was joined by his son Richard Moses .-Fire appliances:...

vehicles being stationed there.

Until 1938, the provision of a fire brigade was a discretionary power, and naturally there were a few local authorities that regarded it as an unnecessary expense. However, due to the threat of war, Parliament

Parliament of the United Kingdom

The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...

enacted the Fire Brigades Act 1938

Fire Brigades Act 1938

The Fire Brigades Act 1938 was the primary legislation for Great Britain, excluding London, that placed responsibility for the provision of a fire brigade onto the local authority, and away from the insurance companies....

and made it a duty and so created over 1,600 individual fire authorities across the nation. It was these local brigades and the Auxiliary Fire Service

Auxiliary Fire Service

The Auxiliary Fire Service was first formed in 1938 in Great Britain as part of Civil Defence Air raid precautions. Its role was to supplement the work of brigades at local level. In this job it was hampered severely by the incompatibility of equipment used by these different brigades - most...

– also formed in 1938 – that valiantly coped with the consequences of the Battle of Britain

Battle of Britain

The Battle of Britain is the name given to the World War II air campaign waged by the German Air Force against the United Kingdom during the summer and autumn of 1940...

and much of The Blitz

The Blitz

The Blitz was the sustained strategic bombing of Britain by Nazi Germany between 7 September 1940 and 10 May 1941, during the Second World War. The city of London was bombed by the Luftwaffe for 76 consecutive nights and many towns and cities across the country followed...

. In August 1941, local brigades and the AFS

Auxiliary Fire Service

were absorbed into one organisation called The National Fire Service

National Fire Service

The National Fire Service was the single fire service created in Great Britain in 1941 during the Second World War; a separate National Fire Service was created in 1942....

. It was in 1941 that the current Headquarters house The Godlands was requisitioned for war-time use by the National Fire Service

National Fire Service

The National Fire Service was the single fire service created in Great Britain in 1941 during the Second World War; a separate National Fire Service was created in 1942....

and it has remained with the fire service

Fire service in the United Kingdom

The fire services in the United Kingdom operate under separate legislative and administrative arrangements in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales...

ever since.

World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

brought dark days indeed for Kent

Kent

fire-fighters. Fire-fighting has been and will probably always be a dangerous occupation, and the Roll of Honour 1899-1990, compiled by Geoffrey Cooper, an ex-Kent fire-fighter, details the deaths of Kent fire-fighters while on duty. Of the 122 'Kent' names listed, 15 were pre-1939, 16 were post-1939 and 91 died during World War II. Nationally, well over 1,000 fire-fighters died during World War II, with stories of fire station

Fire station

A fire station is a structure or other area set aside for storage of firefighting apparatus , personal protective equipment, fire hose, fire extinguishers, and other fire extinguishing equipment...

s and the water supplies needed for fire-fighting being targeted by German bomber

Bomber

A bomber is a military aircraft designed to attack ground and sea targets, by dropping bombs on them, or – in recent years – by launching cruise missiles at them.-Classifications of bombers:...

s, to maximise the damage caused by incendiary bombs. The last death on duty of a Kent fire-fighter was in 1990.

The fire service

Fire service in the United Kingdom

The fire services in the United Kingdom operate under separate legislative and administrative arrangements in England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales...

was returned to local authority control on 1 April 1948 under the Fire Services Act 1947

Fire Services Act 1947

-General Arrangement of the Act:-Scotland:The FRSA 2004 extended only to England and Wales, thus leaving the FSA 1947 in force in Scotland. Most of the 1947 Act was later repealed by the FSA 2005, which left ss...

, with responsibility in England

England

England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...

and Wales

Wales

Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...

being given to the 146 counties and county boroughs of the day. The County of Kent and the City and County Borough of Canterbury

Canterbury

Canterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....

combined to form Kent Fire Brigade, taking over 79 fire stations from the National Fire Service.

Subsequent local government reorganisations have had their effect upon the brigade, most significantly in 1965 when eight fire stations in the northwest of the county were transferred to the newly created Greater London

Greater London

Greater London is the top-level administrative division of England covering London. It was created in 1965 and spans the City of London, including Middle Temple and Inner Temple, and the 32 London boroughs. This territory is coterminate with the London Government Office Region and the London...

area. Further reorganisation in 1974 saw Canterbury

Canterbury

Canterbury is a historic English cathedral city, which lies at the heart of the City of Canterbury, a district of Kent in South East England. It lies on the River Stour....

lose its county borough status and the fire brigade became the exclusive responsibility of Kent County Council

Kent County Council

Kent County Council is the county council that governs the majority of the county of Kent in England. It provides the upper tier of local government, below which are 12 district councils, and around 300 town and parish councils. The county council has 84 elected councillors...

. In 1998, the structure of local government changed again and Kent

Kent

combined with the new Medway Towns unitary authority for fire brigade provision.

On 1 October 2003, Kent Fire Brigade was renamed Kent Fire and Rescue Service to better reflect the requirements demanded of it for many years. These changes were reflected nationally by the enactment of the Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004

Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004

The Fire and Rescue Services Act 2004 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.It came into effect on 1 October 2004. It only applies to Great Britain and most provisions apply only in England and Wales...

which came into effect on 1 October 2004.

In the spring of 2011, Kent Fire and Rescue underwent changes to its structure, these included restructuring from three divisions to 5 area groups: North Kent, East Kent, West Kent, South Kent and Mid Kent. Each group consists of a number of clusters, which are made up of a number of certain stations where resources are locally managed. The Letter prefix for each division was dropped in the station call sign, for instance Swanley, under the old system was named as Station S31 the S standing for South Division, now it is just Station 31.

Retained to Part Time

On the first of June 2011 the Retained Duty System was replaced with the Part Time Duty system, Under the old system Retained Firefighters responded from home or work and typically provided cover for around 120 hours a week. Under the new system the Firefighters only provide up to 60 hours a week. There are 2 elements to the new system, 'On Call' and 'Positive Hours'. The 'On Call' element is provided by responding to a pager within 4 minutes of an emergency call. The 'Positive Hours' element includes spending time on station either for training or maintenance, or in some cases providing cover at other stations where crewing requires, Firefighters are now on a fixed salary depending on their cover provided.

Emergency Calls and Incidents

On an annual basis, Kent Fire and Rescue Service receives approximately 35-40,000 emergency

Emergency

An emergency is a situation that poses an immediate risk to health, life, property or environment. Most emergencies require urgent intervention to prevent a worsening of the situation, although in some situations, mitigation may not be possible and agencies may only be able to offer palliative...

calls. It mobilises resources to about 25,000 emergency

Emergency

incidents each year. The number of emergencies attended has reduced by approximately 25% over the past 10 years, in part a result of Community Safety work undertaken by the Service, and the annual number of deaths and casualties at incidents attended by the Service has also fallen over that time.

Fire Appliances

There are 6 types of front line Fire Engine in Kent, these are as follows;

Pump (P) - this is the standard appliance across Kent, these are crewed by Part Time Firefighters at the majority of Part Time stations and are the 2nd appliance at all Day Crewed Stations and some Whole Time Stations. These carry mainly fire fighting equipment including; Light Portable Pump, Selection of Delivery Hose, 4 Breathing Apparatus Sets, 2 Hose Reels, First Aid Kit and Defib. 10 Metere ladder, Roof Ladder, Rescue Chocks and Blocks. Chimney Fire fighting equipment, Beaters, Fire Extinguishers.

Pump Ladder (PL) - The same as the standard pump but carries the 13.5 metre ladder and 7 metre Ladder.

Extended Pump Ladder (EPL) - This is a pump ladder but with a Hydraulic Ram and Cutters ('Jaws of Life'), Water Rescue Suits for Water First Responding, Thermal Image Camera.

Rescue Pump Ladder (RPL) - This is an Extended Pump Ladder but carries Dedicated Cutting equipment, Spreaders, Rams and Air Bags. It also carries a Positive Pressure Ventilation Fan (PPV) and Grindex Pump.

Rescue Pump Platform (RPP) - This new (2008) type of appliance carries everything that a Rescue Pump Ladder carries but rather than a 13.5m Ladder it houses a dedicated rescue platform for gaining access to HGV cabs and for use on uneven ground.

Combined Aerial Rescue Pump (CARP) - Introduced in 2010 there is the only type of this appliance in Kent, based at 74 Tunbridge Wells it is a combination of Rescue Pump Ladder and Aerial Ladder Platform. Based on a Scania P chassis it can be used as a front line appliance or as an Aerial appliance.

Support Appliances

Alongside Kent Fires front line Fire fighting appliances there are various support appliances stationed around the county these are;

Water Unit - Located at Larkfield and Ashford and crewed by Part Time Firefighters and are mobilised when water supplies are not sufficient. Based on a Scania chassis they carry 11000 litres of water and 2 dams.

Water Management Unit - Located at Tunbridge Wells and Faversham and crewed by Part Time Firefighters these machines carry larger diameter hose and 4 Light Portable Pumps and are usually used at larger incidents where water supplies are not sufficient or water relays are needed, it is also mobilised with a supporting pump and is used when the High Volume Pump is mobilised. It was built by Angus Fire and is on a Scania chassis.

Aerial Ladder Platform - Based at Thanet and Medway and on Scania chassis these are used when a conventional ladder is not sufficient or where a water tower is needed

Turntable Ladder - Based at Ashford and Canterbury and on an unusual Iveco Magirus chassis and is used for high rise rescues and as a water tower.

Fire Fogging Unit - Based on a Vauxhall Brava it houses a small pump ideal for grass and woodland fires

Incident Support Unit -

Fire stations

Kent Fire and Rescue Service operates 67 fire stations, 14 of which are crewed day and night (wholetime) some also have a Part Time appliance, 9 day crewed (Monday to Friday 09:00 - 18:00, Saturday and Sunday 09:00 - 13:00 - these stations also have a pump crewed by part time firefighters co-located with them) and the remaining 43 stations are crewed by part time firefighters who live in the local community, near to their fire station and can arrive there within four minutes of being mobilised. Kent also has one Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) Station located in Maidstone behind Maidstone Fire Station, Opened in 2009 it houses state of the USAR training and has a collapsed building simulator inside, one of the first in the UK. There are 5 Stations groups or divisions, North, South, East, West and Mid Kent. Located within each group are Station Clusters which number 19. Clusters are groups of Fire Stations that are managed locally, each cluster consists of its Fire Stations, 2 Station Managers, and 1 Group Manager.
South Kent Group

Ashford 11

Whole Time and Part Time

Rescue Pump Ladder 11R1, Pump 11P1, Water Unit 11W1, Turntable Ladder 11A1, New Dimension DIM POD 11H9
Chilham 12

Part Time

Pump 12P1
Wye 13

Part Time

Pump 13P1
Charing 14

Part Time

Extended Pump Ladder 14P1
Aldington 15

Part Time

Pump 15P1
Dover 16

Whole Time and Part Time

Rescue Pump Ladder 16R1, Pump 16P1, Command Support Unit (CSU) 16C1
St Margarets 17

Part Time

Pump 17P1
Whitfield 18

Part Time

Pump Ladder 18P1
Folkestone 19

Whole Time and Part Time

Rescue Pump Ladder 19R1, Pump 19P1, Water Support Unit 19T1, Fire Investigation Unit 19F1.
New Romney 20

Part Time

Extended Pump Ladder 20P1
Hythe 21

Part Time

Pump Ladder 21P1, Pump 21P2
Dymchurch 22

Part Time

Pump 22P1, Co Responder Car
Lydd 23

Part Time

Extended Pump Ladder 23P1
Cranbrook 24

Part Time

Rescue Pump Ladder 24R1
Hawkhurst 25

Part Time

Pump 25P1

Tenterden 26

Extended Pump Ladder 26P1
West Kent Group
Dartford 30

Whole Time

Rescue Pump Platform 30R1, Extended Pump Ladder 30P1, Fire Fogging Unit 30M1
Swanley 31

Part Time

Extended Pump Ladder 31P1
Horton Kirby

Part Time

Pump 32P1
Swanscombe 33

Part Time

Pump Ladder 33P1
Thameside (Gravesend) 35

Wholetime

Rescue Pump Platform 35R1, Extended Pump Ladder 35P1, Command Support Unit 35C1, New Dimension DIMA Unit 35T9
Sevenoaks 68

Day Crewed and Part Time

Rescue Pumpe Ladder 68R1, Pump 68P1
Westerham 69

Part Time

Pump 69P1
Edenbridge 70

Part Time

Extended Pump Ladder 70P1, Co Resonder Car
Seal 71

Part Time

Pump 71P1
Mid Kent
Maidstone 60

Wholetime

Rescue Pump Platform 60R1, Extended Pump Ladder 60P1, Command Support Unit 60C1, DIM Unit Van 60T1, DIM Pod 60H8
USAR 61

Wholetime on Pagers

New Dimension Pods 61T 61H (5 Pods per crew member)
Lenham 62

Part Time

Pump 62P1
Headcorn 63

Part Time

Pump 63P1, Diesel Bowser (Used by Fleet Services)
Marden 64

Part Time

Pump 64P1
Larkfield 65

Day Crewed and Part Time

Rescue Pump Ladder 65R1, Pump 65P1, Water Unit 65W1, Water Support Unit and Inland Boat 65T1
Borough Green 67

Part Time

Pump 67P1
Tonbridge 72

Day Crewed and Part Time

Rescue Pump Ladder 72R1, Pump 72P1, Water Support Unit 72T1
Paddock Wood 73

Part Time

Extended Pump Ladder 73P1, Co Responder Car
Tunbridge Wells 74

Whole Time and Part Time

Combined Aerial Rescue Pump (CARP) 74R6, Extended Pump 74P1, Water Management Unit (Hose Layer) 74W1 (can also be crewed at Tonbridge 72)
Rushtall 75

Part Time

Pump 75P1
Southborough 76

Part Time

Pump 76P1
Matfield 77

Part time

Pump 77P1
North Kent
Cliffe 36

Part Time

Pump 36P1
Hoo 37

Part Time

Extended Pump Ladder 37P1, Co Responder Car
Grain 38

Part Time

Pump 38P1
Strood 39

Whole Time

Rescue Pump Ladder 39R1, Bulk Foam Unit 39T1, Land Rover 4x4 39T2
Halling 40

Part Time

Pump 40P1
Chatham 41

Part Time

Now Un-Crewed as appliance 43P2 located at Medway, but available in certain conditions combined with Gillingham
Gillingham 42

Part Time

Now Un-Crewed as appliance 43P2 located at Medway, but available in certain conditions combined with Chatham
Medway 43

Whole Time and Part Time

Rescue Pump Platform 43R1, Extended Pump Ladder 43P1, Pump 43P2 (appliance relocated here from Chatham/Gillingham), Aerial Ladder Platform 43A1, Incident Support Unit 43T1 43T2
Rainham 44

Part Time

Pump 44P1
Sittingbourne 45

Day Crewed and Part Time

Rescue Pump Ladder 45R1, Pump 45P1, Incident Command Unit 45T1
Teynham 46

Part Time

Pump 46P1
Queenborough 47

Part Time

Extended Pump Ladder 47P1
Sheppey 48

Day Crewed and Part Time

Rescue Pump Ladder 48R1, Pump 48P1, Offshore Boat and Land Rover 48T1
Eastchurch 49

Part Time

Pump 49P1
East Kent
Canterbury 80

Whole Time

Rescue Pump Platform 80R1, Extended Pump Ladder 80P1, Turntable Ladder 80A1, Incident Support Unit 80T1
Aylesham 81

Part Time

Pump Ladder 81P1
Sturry 82

Part Time

Pump 82P1
Wingham 83

Part Time

Pump 83P1
Faversham 84

Day Crewed and Part Time

Rescue Pump Ladder 84R1, Pump 84P1, Water Management Unit 84W1, Animal Rescue Unit 84R2
Whitstable 85

Day Crewed and Part Time

Rescue Pump Ladder 85R1, Pump 85P1, New Dimension High Volume Pump and Vauxhall 4x4 85T1, Marine Incident Response Group Off Shore Boat and Support Appliances (MIRG) 85T2 85T3 85T4 85T7 85T8 85T9
Herne Bay 86

Day Crewed and Part Time

Rescue Pump Ladder 86R1, Pump 86P1, Fire Fogging Unit 86M1
Margate 87

Whole Time and Part Time

Rescue Pump Ladder 87R1, Pump 87P1
Westgate 88

Part time

Pump 88P1
Thanet 89

Whole Time

Rescue Pump Ladder 89R1, Aerial Ladder Platform 89A1, New Dimension DIM Pod 89T1 89H9
Ramsgate 90

Whole Time and Part Time

Rescue Pump Ladder 90R1, Pump 90P1
Deal 91

Day Crewed and Part Time

Rescue Pump Ladder 91R1, Pump 91P1, Line Rescue 91R2
Eastry 92

Part Time

Pump 92P1, Co Responder Car
Sandwich 93

Part Time

Extended Pump Ladder 93P1, Fire Fogging Unit 93M1, Command Unit 93G1 (93M1 and 93G1 used only during Open Golf events)

Co-responder Stations

Kent Fire and Rescue Service works in partnership with the South East Coast Ambulance Service

South East Coast Ambulance Service

The South East Coast Ambulance Service is the NHS Ambulance Services Trust for south-eastern England, covering Kent , Surrey, West Sussex and East Sussex . It also covers a part of north-eastern Hampshire around Aldershot...

to provide emergency medical cover to area of Kent. These are 6 areas that have been identified as having a greater need for ambulance

Ambulance

An ambulance is a vehicle for transportation of sick or injured people to, from or between places of treatment for an illness or injury, and in some instances will also provide out of hospital medical care to the patient...

cover. The aim of a co-responder team is to preserve life until the arrival of either a Rapid Response Vehicle (RRV) or an ambulance

Ambulance

. Co-responder vehicles are equipped with oxygen and automatic external defibrillation (AED)

Defibrillation

Defibrillation is a common treatment for life-threatening cardiac arrhythmias, ventricular fibrillation and pulseless ventricular tachycardia. Defibrillation consists of delivering a therapeutic dose of electrical energy to the affected heart with a device called a defibrillator...

equipment.
6 of Kent fire stations operating as co-responders:

Edenbridge
Paddock Wood
Eastchurch
Hoo
Eastry
Dymchurch

External links

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