Two fire appliances were seen reversing up Lion Street towards the Town Hall on Tuesday evening, November 14. Two fire crews from the Ferry Road fire station assisted by a further crew from Battle had come to practise with their brand new breathing apparatus. This equipment has recently been acquired by East Sussex Fire Service at a cost of £1,000,000 to be installed in each of 33 fire appliances across East Sussex, including the separate unitary authority of Brighton & Hove.
Assistant Chief Officer, Mark O’Brien, based at the Lewes headquarters was on hand supervising the drill. He explained the function of the telemetry machine which electronically monitors conditions inside the building, communicating with the control centre on board the appliance.
Asked whether access to the scene might have posed a serious threat, he replied that locally based fire crews were very knowledgeable about local conditions and knew from experience what alternative routes were available to them to reach particular incidents.
Photos: Kenneth Bird
Presumably East Street was blocked by illegally parked cars.
…not to mention the vehicle illegally parked outside The George, past which an appliance could not get!