Posted: Friday 2 August 2019, 10:49
Over the last 24 hours over 150 Firefighters from Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service and fire and rescue services across the UK have been supporting the emergency response at Whaley Bridge.
10 High Volume Pumps (HVPs) designed to pump large quantities of water have been deployed to the incident – these have come from across the UK and are supported by 55 Firefighters that support the use of these pumps. We also have 15 personnel working at the strategic holding area where equipment and resources are allocated and distributed to sites across the incident area.
Speaking this morning, Derbyshire’s Chief Fire Officer said: “I would like to thank the local residents for supporting the response to this unprecedented emergency in the Town of Whaley Bridge. It’s a huge credit to those communities for working with the emergency services to evacuate such a large area as quickly as they did.
“We are working with all partners to reduce the risk to the surrounding area as quickly and safely as possible. 10 specialist high volume pumps, along with firefighters from across the whole of the UK, have been brought in to assist in pumping the large quantity of water needed to reduce the immediate risk to surrounding area.”
High volume pumps and assistance have been sent from the following fire and rescue services: Northamptonshire, Warwickshire, Lincolnshire, Hereford & Worcestershire, West Midlands, South Yorkshire, Mid & West Wales, Nottinghamshire, West Yorkshire, Staffordshire and Greater Manchester.
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NOTE TO EDITORS
Derbyshire’s Chief Fire Officer Terry McDermott is available for media interview in the Whaley Bridge area.
Derbyshire’s Deputy Chief Fire Officer, Gavin Tomlinson is also available for immediate interview via phone or at the Service headquarters in Ripley, Derbyshire.