Busy bonfire evening for GMFRS staff

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Bonfire and firework display

Firefighters responded to hundreds of incidents overnight as the county celebrated Bonfire Night.

The 999 control room was busy from 5pm onwards, with emergency call operators at Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service receiving around 100 calls an hour.

The vast majority were for small fires that were causing concern to residents because they were out of control, had no adult supervision or close to property.

Sadly there were a number of injuries during the course of the evening. The worst was at around 8pm when five teenagers were injured in Rochdale - with one suffering full thickness burns to his face. It appears the teenagers were playing with an aerosol around a wheelie bin fire when the incident happened and they then ran off to their nearby homes. Firefighters were called to the home of the most seriously injured, a 14-year-old, who was taken to Oldham Royal for treatment. The others, a 15-year-old and three 14-year-olds, all suffered less serious burns.

Other incidents during the course of the evening included:

A firework being pushed through a letterbox in Edge Close, Salford, where children were inside. Fortunately there were no injuries, and the fire was out on arrival;

A property fire in Hatton Avenue involving the first floor and roof space that was tackled by three crews;

A fire involving the Spanking Roger, a derelict pub in Sawby Road - the third fire at this particular location in the last week.

Altogether, more than 500 calls were received between 5pm and 10.30pm.

Station Manager Lynn Roberts, who is the Control Manager, said: "It's been a busy evening, with our control room receiving hundreds of calls.

"We've had nothing but support from the vast majority of people across Greater Manchester who have enjoyed Bonfire Night responsibly. But the reckless behaviour of a few people have caused our crews and local communities problems we all could have done without.

"Our staff have worked tirelessly over the past few months to encourage people to stay safe during the bonfire season, as have our partner agencies, and that work has paid off with fewer incidents in the run up to November 5.

"Sadly there were still some injuries resulting from firework and bonfire misuse and we will continue to do all we can to prevent this in the future."

Live updates on www.manchesterfire.gov.uk throughout the weekend from the Control room proved extremely popular, with hundreds of comments from members of the public. There was a similar reaction on Facebook, where there were updates from crews as they worked the weekend and Bonfire Night.

The activity was part of a concerted effort to keep the community safe. Other activity taking place over the last two months has included:

• Carrying out more than 300 firework inspections among retailers
• Visits to hundreds of schools to deliver safety messages
• A radio advert competition at high schools;
• A variety of youth engagement activity

GMFRS has worked closely with the police, local authorities and partner agencies throughout the Bonfire period as part of Treacle - a partnership which aims to prevent and tackle antisocial behaviour, criminal damage, incidents and injuries.

Partner agencies involved in this also include Greater Manchester Police, 10 local authorities, Trading Standards, Transport for Greater Manchester, the Chamber of Commerce, HSE and New Economy.

Chief Inspector Leon Jacobs, Greater Manchester Police's lead on Treacle, said: "We are determined to build on the success of last year's campaign, and have had officers and staff from all our divisions working on this operation.

"They have again been working closely with trading standards officials across the region to check that regulations on the sale and use of fireworks are being observed. We have also supported the Fire Service when they have been responding to bonfire and other related incidents, and our teams have been committed to ensuring that everyone has a safe and enjoyable time around bonfires and fireworks."