Wellington Fire Station Open Day

Firefighters will be in action to showcase their skills at an open day at Wellington Fire Station on Saturday, September 5.

Highlights include a demonstration from the brigade’s animal rescue team which featured on BBC Breakfast TV earlier this year.

There will also be an eye catching display of the ferocity of a chip pan fire, a variety of pump and ladder drills, as well as important advice on fire safety for the home and business.

Submitted by Elaine Adams on Mon, 31/08/2015 - 15:58

"Destroyed" New Car Aids Shropshire Firefighters

A brand new car has been "destroyed" - but it’s all in a good cause to train the emergency services in Shropshire.

College students helped to strip down and rebuild the former demonstration car in their car maintenance classes.

The main pillars of the £30,000 black Chevrolet Captiva were completely sawn through so that the roof can be manually lifted off.

Submitted by Elaine Adams on Thu, 16/07/2015 - 09:25

Shropshire Firefighters in Menin Gate Tribute

Shropshire firefighters joined colleagues from around the world to commemorate the 30,000th sounding of the Last Post at Belgium’s Menin Gate in honour of the missing war dead in WW1.

Firefighters at Wellington and Shrewsbury fire stations stood to attention as two county buglers played the Last Post at 7pm – the same time as firefighters have sounded the tribute every day since 1928.

Submitted by Elaine Adams on Fri, 10/07/2015 - 09:53

Shropshire Fire Crews in Farm Fire Exercise

Shropshire firefighters carried out an exercise last night to practice their firefighting skills attending a rural farmhouse "fire".

Firefighters from Craven Arms Fire Station were called out to the scene at an empty cottage at Corfton Farm in Corvedale Road which had been pumped full of white cosmetic smoke to recreate as near as possible the conditions of a house fire.

Farmer Stephen Povall, a South Shropshire parish councillor who owns the cottage, donated the building for the day which is under renovation.

Submitted by Elaine Adams on Thu, 18/06/2015 - 11:02

Beyond the Call of Duty… Awards For Firefighters and Civilians

Firefighters and civilians alike who put their lives at risk to save others were praised for their selfless acts at an awards ceremony held in Shropshire.

Three binmen who rescued an elderly couple from a burning car were honoured alongside firefighters, some who braved terrorist bomb attacks in the 1980s and also fought the largest fire in UK peacetime during a 30 year career with Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service.

Submitted by Elaine Adams on Tue, 19/05/2015 - 11:42

Roger Smith - A UK Record Breaking Firefighter

The longest serving current firefighter in the UK is to retire from Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service after a record 48 year career.

Roger Smith (70), a former mayor of Market Drayton, has been fighting fires since 1967 and “hangs up his helmet” at a final drill session at Market Drayton fire station.

Submitted by Elaine Adams on Wed, 13/05/2015 - 17:18

Shropshire Employers' 25 Year Support For County Firefighters'

A company which has actively backed Shropshire’s on call firefighters for the past 25 years has been praised for its support.

Chief Fire Officer John Redmond said Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service relied on businesses such as Ludlow’s DMS Plastics which allowed employees, who are also trained firefighters, to “drop tools” at a moment’s notice to respond to 999 calls.

The firm in Lingen Road, Ludlow, currently has one of its 25 staff , employed as an on call firefighter and five previous firefighter employees over the past 25 years.

Submitted by Elaine Adams on Thu, 30/04/2015 - 11:20

Women Who Want To Be Firefighters

An ongoing campaign to encourage more Shropshire women to become part time professional firefighters launches again on Saturday, May 2, with a taster day at Craven Arms fire station.

A similar session held at Craven Arms last year resulted in mother of two Kat Frost (29), enrolling and successfully completing 12 months of training to join firefighting colleagues who turn out at a moment’s notice to respond to 999 calls in the area.

Submitted by Elaine Adams on Thu, 23/04/2015 - 08:54

Shropshire Firefighters Show Their Animal Rescue Skills On Breakfast TV

Shropshire firefighters showed off their animal rescue skills live on BBC television this morning.

BBC Breakfast presenter Sian Lloyd was with the animal rescue team based at Wellington Fire Station, where the cameras were rolling today.

She reported how the demands for the animal rescue team, formed a few years ago, were growing from farmers and horseriders whose animals get into difficulty.

Other fire services across the UK were now also setting up similar animal rescue teams.

Rob Sheppard told how animals can be highly strung and react after an incident.

Submitted by Elaine Adams on Tue, 14/04/2015 - 17:04

Ludlow's Watch Manager Retires After 38 Year Firefighting Career

The man who has led Ludlow’s firefighters for the past 20 years is stepping down after a 38 year firefighting career.

John Taylor (63) is retiring as Watch Manager at Ludlow Fire Station where he has been in charge of 18 of the town’s firefighters’.

But John, of Charlton Rise, Ludlow, will still be continuing his family painting and decorating business which his grandson Michael has just joined.

With an average 200 emergency calls a year, John reckons he has turned out to around 8,000 incidents during his time with Shropshire Fire and Rescue Service.

Submitted by Elaine Adams on Fri, 10/04/2015 - 10:20

Staff