HAMPSHIRE fire crews responded to more than 6,000 false alarms in a year, including hundreds from malicious hoaxers putting lives in ‘serious danger’.
Home Office data shows that almost half of all incidents attended by the Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service in the year to September 2020 stemmed from false alarms.
Most were caused by faulty equipment or the accidental activation of smoke alarms and sprinkler systems.
Of the rest, 33 per cent were raised by people with good intentions, while 209 ‘malicious’ incidents were linked to hoax calls or alarms being set off where there was no fire.
The National Fire Chiefs Council said false alarms happened ‘approximately every two minutes’ across England and cost services thousands of hours of lost productivity – ‘time that could be spent on other vital, and often life-saving activities’.
In Hampshire, 47 per cent of all calls attended over 12 months were false alarms, while more than 226,000 were logged nationally, including over 5,500 malicious incidents.
NFCC chair, Roy Wilsher, described the figures as shocking and said malicious callers could prevent crews from attending incidents where people were in serious danger.
He added: ‘People making these reckless calls need to ask themselves what would happen if a member of their family needed emergency assistance and firefighters were attending a malicious call.
‘We need change.’
A Home Office spokesman warned hoaxers that they could face prosecution, before going on to add: ‘Malicious false alarms take our firefighters away from front line work, protecting our communities and potentially saving lives.
‘They can amount to a criminal offence and we support the prosecution of these incidents where appropriate.’
Over the course of ten years, the number of false calls has dropped by more than a fifth but in 2020 they still represented more than 40 per cent of all incidents attended by 45 fire services, while actual fires accounted for just 28 per cent.
‘Burnt toast’ or general cooking mishaps were behind almost a quarter of all false alarms, with more than 32,000 attributed to faulty smoke alarms and 177, bizarrely, linked to animals. to see this
THEY say you should never meet your heroes.
But try telling that to people from Portsmouth, who have shared with The News their stunning assortment of superstar selfies from over the years.
From Michael Bublé to Taylor Swift, from Pelé to Samuel L Jackson and Debbie Harry, the list of celebrities they’ve met is so incredible we simply had to share it with you.
Admittedly not all 35 snaps in this gallery are smartphone selfies, but each one captures the moment someone from Portsmouth met one of showbiz’s top names.
Taken a picture with someone very famous yourself ? Email it to byron. melton@thenews.co.uk, telling us who it’s with, where and when, and we may share it in a later gallery.
Waterlooville resident Richard Murray has seen his photographic talents recognised in the South Downs National Park’s astrophotography contest. Richard scooped third place in the Living Dark Skies category for his image of a curious night fox entering his garden. The cosmic themed photography competition received more than 150 entries. See more @southdownsnp
FALSE ALARMS Fire crews responded to over 6,000 in a year
Kyel Humby with former Manchester United and England centre-back Rio Ferdinand at Walt Disney World Resort, in Florida
Poppy Tracey with British TV presenter Dermot O’Leary at Victorious Festival in Southsea
Sean Burridge with Hollywood actor and singer, Kiefer Sutherland, when he performed at Wickham Festival in 2019
Jemma Turner with American actor and model Jason Momoa, from Game of Thrones and Aqua Man
Sarah Steel with actor Sir Anthony Hopkins while he was filming Transformers in Gosport
Nina Shore with comedian, actor, writer and activist Eddie Izzard at a lecture in 2016
Natalie Angeline with actor Hugh Bonneville at Daisy B’s Kitchen in Titchfield
George Thompson with former British boxer Chris Eubank on a construction site in Brighton
Niki Weatherley with former British F1 driver David Coulthard
Cathy Wood with jockey Sir AP McCoy at Lambourn Open Day, 2018
Annette Austin with actor Dame Judi Dench.
Sean Barnes with all-time Brazilian football great, Pelé
Louise Finn with superstar Robbie WIlliams
Joanna Quade with famed English broadcaster Clare Balding
David Bailey with Blondie’s superstar vocalist Debbie Harry
Gavin Clark with late prime minister Margaret Thatcher at an event in the House of Lords
Rachel Masters also met Helena’s former partner, and famed film director, Tim Burton at the Dark Shadows premiere
Kimberley Villa with Micheal Bublé in Venice Airport. The singer ushered Kimberley over after spotting her trying to take a photo of him from behind a pillar!
Stephen Bailey strikes again - this time with former Nirvana drummer and Them Crooked Vultures and Foo Fighters frontman, Dave Grohl, at Portsmouth Guildhall
Dan Sapio with world-renowned football manager, Carlo Ancelotti, who currently manages Everton, at West Leigh Park
Lyndsey Hall was among lucky Taylor Swift fans to be invited to the superstar’s rented London home for the evening in 2017
Matt Jarvis with actor Sir Ian McKellen at Chichester Festival Theatre, after he performed in King Lear
Wend Feltham with musician Gary Numan at the Pyramids in Portsmouth in 2017
Charlotte Crotty with TV’s Judge Rinder and Stanley Johnson, father of the prime minister, Boris Johnson
Amie Hoyle with actor Mark Wahlberg when he filmed Transformers in Gosport.
Nigel Fitch with Chichester-born astronaut Major Tim Peake, whose father, Nigel, once wrote for The News
Laura Haste with former Oasis musician Noel Gallagher at a petrol station in West Meon
Rachel Masters with actor Helena Bonham-Carter at a London film premiere
Peter Spratt with Hollywood superstar David Hasselhoff
Stephen Bailey with the late Sir Bruce Forsyth
Chantelle Driscoll with boxer David Haye at the Marriott Hotel
Ross Jones with singer-songwriter Sam Smith at the Brit Awards
Samantha Mcleod with Hollywood superstar Samuel L Jackson
Jade Shelley with F1 driver Lewis Hamilton
Brooke Sutton with rapper 50 Cent
BALLROOM CHAMPIONSHIPS The Savoy Ballroom, Southsea
HENRIETTA STREET Before it was cleared in 1960
ILL-FATED MANOEUVRE A different view of HMS Vanguard when she came adrift when being towed out of the harbour and ran into Point, Old Portsmouth. Leaving the harbour at 10.00 on August 4, 1960 and at 10.35 she ran aground into 24ft of water. She was aground for 40 minutes before being towed out into the mainstream and on her way to the breaker’s yard at Faslane
Picture: Paul Costen
DISTANT SKYLINE The Clarence Pier area with the old power station in the background, about 1960
FINAL REEL The Victoria Hall cinema at the southern end of Commercial Road, Portsmouth, at the end of its life in 1960
BEAUTY PARADE A Miss Southsea beauty contest on South Parade Pier in the 1960s
RETAIL LANDMARK White Furnishing - London Road/Stubbington Avenue in the early 1960’s
THE WHEELBARROW BARS Kent Road, Southsea, 1960
M
Dark Skyscapes
By John Fox, second, SD
NIGHT FOX By Richard Murray, third place, Living Dark Skies
OUR MAGNIFICENT MOON By Jashenpreet Singh, second place, Magnificent Moon category
STARTRAIL CHESTNUT TREE By Anthony Whitbourn
NEOWISE OVER ARUNDE By Neil Jones, third place, SD Dark Skyscapes
MILKY WAY FROM CISSBURY By Neil Jones, winner, SD Dark Skyscapes category
GAZING AT MARS By Luke Chipperfield, second, Living Dark Skies