April 9, 2016 1.34 pm This story is over 95 months old

Firefighters hold protest over plans to downgrade Lincoln fire station

Lincolnshire firefighters have staged a street rally against plans to downgrade a Lincoln fire station. As previously reported, a consultation launched by Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue on March 1 proposed altering the shift patterns at Lincoln South fire station, so that firefighters are only on the base during the day and on call within five…
Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite

Lincolnshire firefighters have staged a street rally against plans to downgrade a Lincoln fire station.

As previously reported, a consultation launched by Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue on March 1 proposed altering the shift patterns at Lincoln South fire station, so that firefighters are only on the base during the day and on call within five minutes at night.

Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue has estimated that response times could rise by two minutes between 6.30pm and 7.30am, which has been met with concern by some firefighters and the Lincolnshire Fire Brigades Union.

Some of these firefighters displayed their unease at the plans at the protest on Lincoln High Street on Saturday, April 9.

Lincolnshire FBU chair Ben Selby. Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite

Lincolnshire FBU chair Ben Selby. Photo: Steve Smailes for The Lincolnite

Ben Selby, FBU chair in Lincolnshire, said: “We’re campaigning against the cuts to the fire service and primarily we’re petitioning against the cut to Lincoln South fire station.

“They’re downgrading it from a 24 hour station to a day crew station. That will increase the response times from around one minute which it is now to up to five minutes.

“We’re hoping to get the public on board through this petition process and the campaigns. What we’re hoping is that support will equate to councillors reconsidering and asking themselves ‘do we really want to cut a frontline fire service here in Lincoln?'”