'Alerts give you more time to escape danger and firefighters more time to act'

05 April 2023 , 23:01

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'Alerts give you more time to escape danger and firefighters more time to act'

More than 800 fires were recorded on the hottest day last summer.

Some of our country’s firefighters tackled more than 50 wildfires on a single day.

Thanks to the heroic efforts of these brave individuals, not a single life was lost.

But this was no one off. We faced four times as many wildfires last summer as the previous year.

Over my years working in the fire service and on major incident response, I’ve seen a lot in my time - the unpredictability of fire, and the devastation and danger it can cause.

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While extreme weather like July’s heatwave shows the best of our service, it is pushing our firefighters to the limit.

Firefighters' chiefs say staff are being pushed to the limit (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

We must adapt and use every tool at our disposal to keep people safe.

We also need everyone to play their part.

The new national Emergency Alerts system is one way we can do this.

This technology will let us urgently send warning messages to mobile phones in a specific area when there is a risk to life - giving you more time to escape danger, and us more time to fight fires.

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From the example of other countries like the USA and the Netherlands, we know this works.

So at 3pm on the 23rd April, you will face a loud siren-like noise from your mobile phone.

For 10 seconds, it may be inconvenient.

But please forgive us for the intrusion, because the next time you hear it, your life and the life-saving actions of firefighters’ could depend on it.

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Alex Woodman is Chief Fire Officer and Resilience Lead on the National Fire Chiefs Council

Alex Woodman