£1.25m investment will buy three vehicles for fire and rescue service

GLOUCESTERSHIRE Fire and Rescue Service is to set to acquire three new specialist vehicles, costing a total of £1.25 million.

A report submitted to Gloucestershire County Council’s cabinet says the current fleet is ageing and needs to be replaced.

The vehicles – an aerial ladder platform, an incident command unit and a crane unit – will be bought over the next two years, using capital funding that has already been secured from the county council.

The council says the vehicles are more environmentally friendly than the old fleet because they use greener engines. This means the amount of emissions they produce is reduced.

The vehicles would also help ensure the average availability of GFRS fire engines remains high.

Currently, the average availability is 91.8 per cent, which is higher than the average across England of 86.4 per cent.

The cabinet gave its approval to go ahead with the purchases at its recent meeting.

Chief Fire Officer Mark Preece said: “These new vehicles will enable us to continue to provide the best possible service to the people of Gloucestershire.

“The current fleet is ageing and needs replacing and these more modern, efficient vehicles will ensure that we can respond as promptly as possible to fires and other emergencies around the county.”

Councillor Dave Norman, the Gloucestershire County Council cabinet member with responsibility for the fire and rescue service, added: “I’m delighted that we are able to continue our investment into Gloucestershire Fire and Rescue Service.

“These new vehicles will help us meet our climate change ambitions by cutting emissions and ensure crews are using the most modern vehicles to keep people safe.”

During the cabinet meeting, the improvement plan developed in response to the most recent report of His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire and Rescue Services was approved for submission.