24-hr fire cover safe ...for now (From Warrington Guardian)

24-hr fire cover safe ...for now

A REVIEW of whether to keep firefighters at Birchwood fire station round-the-clock has been scrapped.

Fears had surfaced that 24-hour coverage provided from the Ordnance Avenue station would be dropped and that Birchwood would become a day crew only location.

It appears that Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service has had a re-think because of the scale of redevelopment currently in the pipeline in the borough.

In its latest Integrated Risk Management Plan (IRMP), the service states that the review has been dropped because of 'major changes'. The redevelopment of the town centre and the planned Omega business park in Burtonwood are two of the projects cited.

Fire chiefs believe that, as schemes are agreed in the town, a greater demand will be created. This means that for the short term at least, the future staffing at the station is secure.

The plans for a possible review of staffing at Birchwood were announced last year as part of a check to ensure resources were deployed correctly to match risks.

The station was originally built because of a predicted population rise within the area which was never fully realised despite it covering a large commercial and industrial sector and serving more than 42,000 residents.