Goring Fire Station Open Day

Despite having to move the original date due to the sad passing of Her Majesty the Queen, the day was a huge success, with over 400 people attending between 10am and 4pm. Young and old enjoyed a wide variety of attractions – including games, face painting, a raffle and a very popular silent auction. Helped by a glorious autumnal day the demand on the food stalls was so much that an emergency ‘burger crew’ was dispatched to Tesco to stock up dwindling supplies! The atmosphere was buoyed by a live performance from local band The Mysteries who delighted the crowd with a selection of wonderfully played, well known songs.

The on call firefighters from Goring (see P44) were joined by wholetime colleagues from Oxford fire stations, Kidlington and Rewley Road, and representatives from South Central Ambulance Service and Thames Valley Police. The crowds were wowed with drills that simulated a rescue from a burning building (utilising Goring station’s drill tower) and how crews might use their skills and equipment to help casualties at an RTC (road traffic collision) with two mocked up accidents. Goring is part of Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service, an organisation that provides emergency response and community safety information services for the citizens of Oxfordshire and those who visit or commute through the area. The Open Day demonstrations showcased some of the wider tasks the firefighters are involved with. It’s not just firefighting, it’s rescues from road traffic collisions and water incidents. Indeed, the scope of the Fire Service is so broad – they will even get involved with helping the ambulance service and police, animal rescues, flooding incidents, downed power cables and a whole lot more. The county obviously has a fleet of fire engines, but these are supplemented by other vehicles with different tasks. Rewley Road brought down the HP (hydraulic platform) which allows fire crews elevated access to fires or rescues. Kidlington brought the Rescue Tender – a vehicle with more specialist equipment to help with rescue scenarios. Oxfordshire County Council run the Fire Service and there are 25 fire stations throughout the county, with Goring being the southernmost and Banbury in the very north. Every station has an on call crew – effectively paid part time firefighters who run their roles in the service alongside other jobs. There is a command structure within the station with a Watch Manager overseeing Crew Managers, Firefighters and Firefighters in development. The Watch Manager will report to a Station Manager who might oversee several stations. The fire engine (known as the ‘appliance’ or ‘truck’) will be available with a minimum of four crew and a maximum of six – and it’s up to Goring to organise their availability to maximise the amount of time the truck is available or ‘on the run’. Most big metropolitan fire services are solely wholetime (firefighters whose sole job is within their respective service). Rural counties utilise a mixture of wholetime crews and on call crews. Of the 25 stations in Oxfordshire, six of them also have a wholetime crew. The route to work as an on call firefighter is open to all genders and is both challenging and hugely enjoyable. After passing a series of physical and mental assessments, the on call crew will undertake a two week initial course before going back to Goring and continuing their development whilst on active duty. There are so many opportunities to develop new skills including breathing apparatus (which allows firefighters to access areas where it’s not possible to without supplementary air) or driving the truck on blue lights. With a lot of flexibility over cover the individual can supply, the crew will do regular drills nights and extra training in the vast myriad of skills needed to be a modern day firefighter. The feeling of camaraderie amongst the crews is such a wonderful thing to experience. As importantly, the crews will also work to promote fire safety across the county with events such as Open Days alongside school visits, community events, charity events, installing fire alarms in residential homes etc. The money raised from the Goring Open Day was donated to The Fire Fighters Charity. Formed during the Second World War to support the bereaved families of firefighters who had died during the Blitz, the Charity has honoured the legacy of their bravery and sacrifice and evolved over the past 75 years to provide support to current and retired firefighters and their families. A wonderful day that has had some very positive feedback from the wider community, the Open Day showed what an important asset the Fire Station is to Goring and how we should all be hugely proud of the work the crew do. The Goring on call crew would like to thank all the generous local businesses who donated prizes or their time to make it such a success. But mostly to the members of the public who showed up to support Goring Fire Station, Oxfordshire Fire And Rescue Service and The Fire Fighters Charity. The day ended up raising almost £4,000 for this worthy cause.