Massive rise in attacks on 999 fire crews

ATTACKS on firefighters attending 999 calls have soared, new figures reveal.

Crews came under attack 738 times in the year to March – or twice a day. That’s a rise of 28 per cent on 2014-15.

Over the same period, the number of firefighters who suffered injuries at the hands of yobs more than doubled from 24 to 56.

The Home Office statistics include 206 instances of crews coming under attack by thugs throwing objects and 44 cases of physical violence. The remaining incidents cover verbal abuse and harassment.