SOUTH WEST Wiltshire MP Andrew Murrison has said he is “appalled” by proposals that could see Mere fire station close, as a public consultation on the plans opens today (February 13).
The consultation, launched by Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Authority, will run until May 15 and covers proposals to close eight on-call fire stations across.
In Wiltshire, the stations under review are Bradford on Avon, Mere, Ramsbury and Wilton, and in Dorset, Charmouth, Cranborne, Hamworthy and Maiden Newton are at threat.
Dr Andrew Murrison MP
When questioned about the proposals and the public consultation, Dr Murrison said: “I’m appalled by the proposed reduction in cover implied by the consultation document.
“Fear we might lose small Wiltshire fire stations close to the Dorset border was one of the reasons I sought reassurances at the time the amalgamation of the two county services was being considered.
“It’s a challenge to recruit and keep the part-time retained fire fighters who operate small fire stations like Mere. Closing them will make the situation very much worse.
“I would urge my neighbours in and around Mere to respond robustly to the consultation.”
The proposals follow a three-year fire cover review examining data from 2019 to 2024 across all 50 stations in the service area.
The review considered how busy stations are, response times, financial impacts, how incidents could be covered by nearby crews and existing and future community risk.
Chief fire officer Andy Cole said: “No-one wants to close fire stations. As with many public sector organisations, we continue to face significant financial challenges.
“I truly believe these proposals will help better resource the Service and save money, whilst still achieving the level of support our communities expect of us.”
He added that the Authority has not yet made a final decision and urged residents to take part before it meets on June 30 to determine the outcome.
Public meetings and online sessions will be held during March and April.
Stupid, stupid, stupid. There are more homes, more people and more natural disasters tgsn ever before, yet they say we need less emergency services to deal with it all. If this mad hare brained proposal goes through, I pray its the idiots that carried it out need them and that they cannot attend. Maybe if they suffer personally, or their loved ones do, they might just think again
HI They will kill people if they closed his fire stations particularly Wilton’s fire station and said our lives they must keep these stations open they are vital
I can not believe it has come to this an emergency service such as the fire servicestations being closed and putting peoples lives at risk shame on whoever made that decision .
The Chief Fire Officer says, “I truly believe these proposals will help better resource the Service and save money, whilst still achieving the level of support our communities expect of us.”
I cannot believe the person who is paid to protect the people of Dorset and Wiltshire, can make such a statement. He knows that these proposals will cost people their lives, their property and many other things.
I strongly feel his statement is a disgrace to his position. He should be condemning any cuts to a severely under funded service and stating, very loudly, to the public, that these proposed cuts are not an option.