Fire engine response times have increased across Islington this year, reigniting the political fallout following the closure of Clerkenwell fire station in January.
The figures, released by the London Fire Brigade, show that the waiting time for the first engine to arrive at the scene of a fire was over 16 seconds longer on average in Islington between January and August this year than it was in 2012-13.
Clerkenwell, where the 140-year-old fire station was closed earlier this year, saw the largest increase in response times, jumping from 3:59 to 5:28 – a total of one minute and 27 seconds.
Greg Edwards, a representative from the Fire Brigades Union and a campaigner for the Save Clerkenwell campaign, said that even the smallest rise in waiting time could be vital. “Lives can be saved, and lost, in seconds. It is just hope from those who pushed through the cuts that somehow everything will be OK as it is still within ‘targets’,” he said.
He added: “Firefighters are not alone in realising the greater risk. The station hasn’t been sold yet. The cuts could still be reversed if the Mayor wanted.”
Other areas with notable increases in response times were Canonbury, with an increase of 44 seconds; Finsbury Park, up by 38 seconds; and Bunhill, which saw an increase of 30 seconds.
Some wards in Islington did see a drop in waiting times, however. The average time until the first fire engine arrived in St Peter’s fell by 28 seconds, while there were also falls in St Mary’s and Junction, both of 12 seconds, and in Caledonian, which saw a fall of four seconds.
London Fire Brigade insisted the attendance times still were “on target”, and pointed out that the waiting times met official requirements which say the first engine should arrive within six minutes and the second engine should arrive within eight minutes.
However, the results were labelled as “devastating” by Fiona Twycross, Labour’s fire spokesperson on the London Assembly. “Whilst increases of a minute here or a few seconds there are brushed aside by the Mayor’s supporters, when you’re dealing with fires, seconds save lives,” she said.
“Fires can take hold in seconds. That’s why any increase in response times can be so dangerous. Given the jump in response times since the fire station closures, it is very fortunate that we have not seen an increase in serious incidents as a result.”
Labour’s comments promoted a strong response from James Cleverly, chair of the London fire authority, the body responsible for the fire station closures. He accused Labour of “spinning like a top” and called on the party to apologise.
“If anything the increases in response times are not as large as predicted, averaging only 15 seconds extra across London,” he said.
“We had to make difficult and significant changes but did so with the ability to protect Londoners as the first planning priority.
“While 371 wards see response times increase, there are 278 which see their response times reduce or stay the same. We have also increased the number of preventative home fire safety visits.
“It is also worth noting that we have had an extended period of industrial action which has required us to hold back 13 fire appliances for contingency crews. Had these been in front line operations, as we had planned, the Brigade’s response times would have been even better.”
For some fires, a single fire engine is not enough to halt the blaze. Waiting times for the second fire engine to arrive at an incident increased in 15 out of 16 of the borough’s wards, with the average time in Islington increasing from 5:47 to 6:12.
[…] Clerkenwell ward saw the largest increase, with an 87 second jump from 3:59 to 5:28. Read my full story for Islington Now here. […]
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