Fire service

Information about the role of the fire service in a major incident.

The role of the fire service at scenes of major incidents will be to assist in restoring the situation by:

• after consultation with the senior police officer present, taking measures to protect life by evacuation of properties within the vicinity of a fire if necessary
• controlling and extinguishing fires as defined by the Fire Services Act 1947
• maintaining operation control of the fire ground within the inner cordon
• providing specialised equipment appropriate to the incident
• obtain information regarding hazardous chemicals
• rendering other assistance as may be required by the prevailing circumstances
• rescuing trapped persons
• where required, the decontamination of emergency services personnel, ie fire, police and ambulance
• where possible carry out salvage operations

The co-operation with other services at the scene, together with the co-ordination of the fire service operations, will be the responsibility of the senior fire officer present.

The primary areas of the Fire Brigade responsibility at a major incident are:

• life-saving through search and rescue
• fire-fighting and fire prevention
• identification and management of hazardous materials and protection of the environment
• salvage and damage control
• safety management within the inner cordon
• maintenance of adequate cover for their own service area