People living and working in the local area are being urged to reduce the risk of fire in their properties following the announcement that firefighters have voted for national strike action.
In an on-going dispute with the Government over pensions, members of the Fire Brigades Union (FBU) have voted in support of industrial action.
At this stage the FBU has made no announcement on the date or duration of any industrial action. However, if a strike were to take place Avon Fire & Rescue Service (AF&RS) will be providing a reduced emergency response service, prioritising calls to where there is a risk to life.
Contingency planning has been taking place for a number of weeks to ensure AF&RS can provide skeleton fire cover, details of which will be released once the dates and duration of the industrial action are announced.
Chief Fire Officer Kevin Pearson said: “If there is a national firefighters strike the reality is we will not be in a position to provide the excellent emergency response we usually can for people in our local area.
“There is a very real threat of industrial action so I would ask local people to take steps to ensure their homes and businesses are as safe as possible.
“Although accidents do happen you can reduce the risk and the impact of a fire in the home by taking extra care not to leave cooking unattended, making sure you check smoke alarms are working and rehearsing escape routes with the whole family.
Business owners and managers should also be aware of their responsibilities to staff and customers under the Fire Safety Order.
CFO Pearson added: “This is a national dispute over which we have no control, but I hope both sides can reach a resolution that means industrial action is avoided.”
