Washing machine on fire
Fire engines from Lerwick and Scalloway were called to attend a fire in Brae when insufficient crew numbers prevented a response from the local brigade.
The units from Lerwick and Scalloway arrived at the house in Gossaford, Brae, half-an-hour after the emergency call was received by the fire service at 3.12pm yesterday. The fire, which was confined to a washing machine, was out by the time firemen arrived.
According to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service the Brae crew were “off run” at the time, which means it had insufficient numbers to attend the incident.
Chris Johnston
And how many crew are necessary to extinguish such a small fire at an early stage? Two at most? Perhaps one in a pinch? Waiting 30 minutes for two appliances and 10 crew to arrive could have resulted in the destruction of the dwelling.
I would be interested to learn how many crew must be available for a remote, single appliance to respond. In the USA, fire brigades respond to an automobile fire with only two crew if there is no risk to life.