Lifesaving equipment heads for Romania

Above: On Call Watch Manager at Sandbach Fire Station John Brownrigg, left, and Sandback firefighter Luke Draycott, right, hand over much needed equipment to members of the Operation Sabre charity

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service has donated surplus equipment to help save lives in Romania.

Hoses, ground monitors, stretchers and a large number of firefighter helmets have been collected from across the service for Operation Sabre. The charity supplies basic firefighting equipment to rural villages in the poorest countries throughout Europe. It will use the surplus equipment to help kit out outdated fire engines being transported to the poorest areas of Romania in a convoy.

John Brownrigg, On Call Watch Manager at Sandbach Fire Station, where the equipment was collected by Operation Sabre, said: “Here in the UK we are all fortunate enough to have access to the very best firefighting equipment and training. Sadly that isn’t the case in countries like Romania. In Romania firefighters travelling from the nearest city can take hours to arrive at fires and collisions and often get there too late to be able to save lives.

“The Operation Sabre charity, supported by fire and rescue services, delivers equipped fire engines to villages in Romania and trains the locals up on how to use them. When we heard about the work the charity does Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service was determined to help.

“We collected all the working equipment we could find that no longer adheres to the UK’s stringent regulations and donated it to Operation Sabre’s ongoing relief effort in Romania. The equipment served us well for many years and helped us to create safer communities. It is fantastic that it will now be used for the same end where it’s needed most by colleagues in Romania. The donation will give the equipment a really important second life that will see it help people far less fortunate than we are instead of being scrapped.”

Three much needed fire engines and equipment will be delivered by Operation Sabre workers and volunteers and fire and rescue service personnel in a 10-day round trip to Romania that is planned to start on Saturday 9 June.

They will provide training to fire crews and other Romanian residents on how to use all the equipment correctly to help keep the people of Romania as safe as possible. A range of equipment will also be delivered to improve the living standards of Romanian communities, with nursing and children homes among those set to benefit.

Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service made its donation to Operation Sabre on Wednesday 23 May.

The charity is appealing for heavy goods drivers and other volunteers to help deliver the fire engines and equipment to Romania. Anyone willing to help should contact John on 07771 840157 or via email at john.brownrigg@cheshirefire.gov.uk.