West Lothian fire crews attacked on bonfire night

Nov 10 2011 by Allan Valente, West Lothian Courier

FIREFIGHTERS in West Lothian came under attack from thugs while trying to deal with incidents over the bonfire weekend.

It has been revealed that on three separate occasions fire crews in Livingston and Whitburn were subjected to abuse and pelted with missiles as they tried to get on with their job.

On Friday, November 4 in Sutherland Way in Livingston, crews were called out to deal with a bonfire in open ground.

However, when the firefighters arrived they were subjected to verbal abuse from youths who also interfered with the fire equipment.

Shortly after 8.30am the following day, fire crews were called out to the playpark near Whitburn Community Centre after youths dragged wheelie bins into the park and set them alight.

They were then pelted with missiles and subjected to verbal abuse and Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service (LBFRS) said police assistance was requested.

Later that evening, shortly before 9.30pm, firefighters returned to the same area to deal with another wheelie bin fire.

Police assistance was required when they received similar treatment from youths.

LBFRS said these were just three of 12 incidents of violence towards crews recorded across the region.

Meanwhile, West Lothian fire services were a lot busier this year compared to last November.

Firefighters attended 43 bonfires from October 31 to November 6, more than double the figures from the same period last year, but down dramatically from five years ago.

Indeed, fire crews all over Lothian and Borders were busier than last year.

This year the control room staff processed 1181 calls from October 31 to November 6, up from 968 calls last year.

Over the same period this year, firefighters attended 231 bonfires throughout the Lothian and Borders area, again up on last year when they attended 151 bonfire related calls.

Bonfire incidents attended on November 5 by the fire service across Lothian and Borders was at 120 this year, up from 100 last year, but a marked improvement on 2007 when the figure stood at 228.

David Lockhart, community safety manager at Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service, said they have been pleased with the backing of the public over this period.

He explained: “Although figures are slightly up this year, possibly in part due to the mild and dry weather, the number of calls is still down from years gone by when we have processed as many as 2000 calls and attended at a higher number of bonfires.”

“Every year the run up to November 5 places significant demands on our service throughout the region.

“However, we do believe more people are choosing to attend organised events, which reduces that burden on us.

“It seems that the public is also aware of and paying attention to fire safety advice in relation to bonfires and fireworks.

“Fortunately, we did not record any serious injuries at any of these types of incidents where we attended.

“Raising awareness of the impact bonfire night and related festivities has on the fire service and improving education, particularly in schools while working with our partner agencies at local authorities and the police, have helped to reduce the number of calls we received in comparison to years gone by. This is something we will continue to do in future years.”