Cornwall Fire & Rescue Service Newsdesk

at 03/08/2005 09:30

*****Photo Opportunity*****
9.30am – 12pm on 3rd August 2005 outside Accident and Emergency Treliske Hospital

The Government’s Modernisation Agenda for the Fire Service is designed to ensure that Fire and Rescue Services are able to provide an appropriate response to regional and national incidents, such as large scale chemical incidents, in partnership with other emergency services.

Cornwall County Fire Brigade regularly trains with other emergency services forming working partnerships that ensure the best possible multi-agency response.

Firefighters from Cornwall County Fire Brigade, NHS Staff from Royal Cornwall Hospital Treliske, Westcountry Ambulance Officers and Emergency Planning Officers will be rehearsing their combined ability to decontaminate members of the public at the hospital following a ‘chemical incident’ in the County.

Cornwall County Fire Brigade has specialist appliances and equipment that give them the ability to decontaminate members of the public at the scene of a chemical incident. This enhances the Brigade’s aim to improve public safety and protection.

The emergency services also need to be able to decontaminate those people that have made their own way to hospital. Firefighters and paramedics can mobilise these resources to anywhere in the County and indeed the Country to deal with incidents of this nature.
An Incident Response Unit from Camborne and four other fire engines will respond to the exercise at RCH.

“When they arrive at the scene the firefighters will immediately set up a visible area for decontamination. This involves the erecting of specially designed shower structures and the provision of clothing packs” said Sub Officer Ray Dawe

He cont: “Those people believed to be affected need to be decontaminated prior to medical assessment to prevent cross contamination to the hospital, and the ambulance and hospital personnel”

Firefighters in the County are trained regularly to deal with many incidents where people could become contaminated. Part of this training programme is to practice these skills at exercises like the one at Treliske with other blue light agencies.

On Sunday 24th July Cornwall County Fire Brigade also took part in an exercise with Devon Fire and Rescue at Okehampton to test regional response to a large scale incident.