Isle of Wight Fire Service Review and you

07/07/2025

Last week a fire tore through the fabric of Petersfield.

The Petersfield Fire engine could not turn a wheel and remained in its garage because there were not enough firefighters available to crew it.

This meant that the next nearest fire engine was Grayshot. A total travel time from the 999 call to arrival was 20 minutes.

That’s 20 minutes the fire was left to develop!

That could have been 20 long minutes if persons were trapped inside!!!

Hampshire and Isle of Wight FBU shared on their page said that -

“On the weekend of 28/6/2025 Hampshire and the Isle of Wight FRS were reduced to just 23 pumps available.

A service that has over 60 stations and 80 fire engines reduced to just 23 available pumps is beyond shocking...

*IT’S DANGEROUS!*

Yet this service proposes to *CUT A FURTHER 30 FIREFIGHTER POSTS* from the frontline to make a saving of £1.6m.

*LET’S GET BACK TO FOCUSING ON SAVING LIVES.!*”

These are dire times already. Allowing the service to cut a further 30 firefighters will only make things worse.

Sign their petition and attend their lobby with them.

Help them to keep being able to help you

https://shorturl.at/vyG4S

16/06/2025

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1013575870974246&id=100069655263514

20/06/2024

Not enough Firefighters on the Island to respond?!?

Firefighters from Shanklin, East Cowes, Ventnor and Southsea have been mobilised to a large field fire in the rural South Wight this evening (Thursday). 3 pumping appliances and a water carrier are on scene near Chale Green, where a blaze has engulfed a farmer’s field near to Appleford Road. A lar...

14/06/2024

A new fire station hot felt roof going on .......

Fire crews are tackling a property blaze effecting a row of terraced houses immediately next door to the fire station in Ventnor this evening (Friday). The fire began at around 17:30 and has developed into a significant incident, with smoke issuing from the roof space of a number of family homes. Th...

14/06/2024

Fire crews are tackling a property blaze effecting a row of terraced houses immediately next door to the fire station in Ventnor this evening (Friday). The fire began at around 17:30 and has developed into a significant incident, with smoke issuing from the roof space of a number of family homes. Th...

25/08/2022

So, they've put a two person appliance at Bembridge. It contains BA sets that can't be used by a crew of two. The station still has no firefighters. A tick box exercise following a fire death.
This is the golden deal of teaming up with Hampshire.

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10159362207977955&id=309220432954

A 2-man fire appliance has been transferred from Southsea to Bembridge in a bid to bring the village's fire station back on the run - more than 2 years after the last firefighters handed in their pagers. Efforts are underway to recruit new retained firefighters in what is a predominately elderly, se...

17/02/2022

Your council tax is not being spent in your interests. Temporary promotions for dubious projects rather than front line firefighters

https://www.facebook.com/309220432954/posts/10159047965577955/

Isle of Wight households have been hit by another council tax hike this week with news that an additional 7.1% will have to be paid towards the fire service precept. The 7.1% annual increase -or £5 for an average Band D taxpayer - comes on top of the increases of 2.99% for the local authority, 4.4%...

13/01/2022

Let's hope we don't need support today

https://www.facebook.com/290713220369/posts/10165986443205370/

19/12/2021

https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=6980244045334055&id=202171646474696

On Monday 13th December Chief Fire Officer Neil Odin announced to staff that the service will move to level Red of the “Operational Resilience and Degradation plan”.

The rationale for this decision is in order to deploy staff to other activities and to support other agencies who are in crisis.

This means that Hampshire and the Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service, who have the responsibility to assess risk and resource the necessary response to protect our communities within Hampshire and Isle of Wight have agreed to reduce the number of Fire Engines available to levels never experienced before.

The intent is admirable but the sacrifice in Fire and Rescue response is not to be taken lightly. Nor the lack of consultation or notification to the general public.

What it means to you?

Hampshire and Isle of Wight will be reduced from an optimum 83 Fire Appliances to between 21/30 (min 64% reduction)

This will extend the time it takes to reach an incident. The current target time is 8 minute attendance 80% of the time.

It will mean less firefighters and fire engines are sent meaning it may take longer to commit a rescue team to save life.

It means a shift from offensive firefighting to defensive to protect neighbouring property.

It means less fire engines and less firefighters sent to high rise building fires. In optimum conditions you could get 8 fire engines at a confirmed high rise fire but when in code red this would be reduced to 4

We thought you should know.

Please stay safe out there and have a merry Christmas

Hampshire and Isle of Wight FBU

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service
The News, Portsmouth
Daily Echo
Fire Brigades Union
Fire Brigades Union - Region 12

16/12/2021

Fire appliances at dangerously low levels that your paying for in your council tax, and now the CFO wants to use fire engines to attend cardiac arrests, potentially keeping them there for two hours or more awaiting an ambulance to attend, to which they cannot proceed to fires or RTCs.
He has completely refused to seek an agreement through the correct nationally recognised procedure, as the covid agreements were, with the nationally recognised representative bodies.
It wi be much better under Hampshire management they promised.
Some new doors roofs and computers don't put out fires or get people out of car accidents.

https://www.facebook.com/1489581798019630/posts/2895955784048884/

16/12/2021

So as we have been told it’s gone from a fire service that doesn’t have enough people to ride all the fire engines, and fire engines coming off the run to now having more than enough fire engines to cover the ambulance service 🤷‍♂️
As if this fire service didn’t have enough problems it looks like fire chiefs now think they can cover the cracks in other emergency services at the same time as ignoring cracks in their own
Why doesn’t the government start funding these services properly instead of giving it to all their friends

https://www.facebook.com/2222636561281445/posts/3009722479239512/?d=n

03/12/2021

Alarmingly tonight, HIWFRS have hit category red BC2 on their degradation plan.

Pre determined attendances have been cut which could mean that only three pumps turning up at a thatch fire, below what is required for safe offensive action.

There are only twenty five pumps available out of 71 within the mainland part of HIWFRS.

As a result this County is relying on appliances from neighbouring brigades should a significant incident occur, taking life saving resources away from those counties.

The IOW has seven pumps available of its twelve. This is the result of constant undercrewing of stations, lack of succession planning or progressive recruitment.

Are the the people of Hampshire and Isle of Wight safe in their beds ?

Is this service really in a position to offer support to other emergencies when it cannot sustain its own?

You as residents are paying for this in your constantly rising council tax. Ever feel like you've been cheated ?