How hot is it where you are?

[EvanDavis]

Hi Evan I hope as you live in a flat you are not involved in the cladding debarcle if so keep safe.

No the building I live in is only 10 years old. That said we used to have signs up telling us to remain in out flats if a fire broke out as apparently we have a 2 hour safe space. All those signs have now been taken down and signs telling us to evacuate immediately have been put up.

 

[bootneck02]

I was in the Fire Service, Kent Fire Brigade until I was injured on the fire ground and had to retire in 1988. I have noticed that the fire brigades all over the country are not the same as I knew. many fire stations have been closed down and personnel have been reduced where as when the minimum crew was a crew of four and now only 3, in my day a 3 man crew was known as supernumerary and another appliance would automatically have been immediately dispatched. The things like OSR's (office shops and railways act) inspections are now carried out by private companies all to save money and bugger people's lives. I was proud to have a fireman but am so angry at the government disregarding the publics safety and the bad advice they must have been given by arm chair bound so called experts who had never attended any fires or incidents.

 

[EvanDavis]

I was in the Fire Service, Kent Fire Brigade until I was injured on the fire ground and had to retire in 1988. I have noticed that the fire brigades all over the country are not the same as I knew. many fire stations have been closed down and personnel have been reduced where as when the minimum crew was a crew of four and now only 3, in my day a 3 man crew was known as supernumerary and another appliance would automatically have been immediately dispatched. The things like OSR's (office shops and railways act) inspections are now carried out by private companies all to save money and bugger people's lives. I was proud to have a fireman but am so angry at the government disregarding the publics safety and the bad advice they must have been given by arm chair bound so called experts who had never attended any fires or incidents.

Minimum crew per appliance in London is 6. This may be hard to hear or accept, but I actually agree with private companies doing inspections on stations. Before Boris Johnsonns closure or 12 stations it was known a few mickey moused facts when it came to their inspections.

 

[bootneck02]

I cannot on the LFB but I do know about many of the County Brigades, many retained stations closed, full time professional fire fighters reduced, I live in a small village and I was taking dogs for a walk and came across a civilian employee of KFB doing hydrant maintenance painting the hydrant post, checking the pit was not full of mud and clearing it if required and clearing foliage around it etc. When coming back the man was gone so I checked it. Foliage sort of cleared, Hydrant post painted, hydrant plate not painted, hydrant pit full of mud and unable to see hydrant, any signs of hydrant test of flow of water none. This hydrant is outside 3 isolated houses and one of them has thatch and the other two are 17 century timber framed ( all high Risk).

 

[Abarbarian]

I don't think it was actually 40 though, cars always tend to over-read when sat out in the sun!

The new car has an iPhone app that lets you start it remotely to get the AC on, so that when you get back to it it's nice and cool. Solves a first world problem rather nicely

That is one very very useful app.

 

[Abarbarian]

I cannot on the LFB but I do know about many of the County Brigades, many retained stations closed, full time professional fire fighters reduced, I live in a small village and I was taking dogs for a walk and came across a civilian employee of KFB doing hydrant maintenance painting the hydrant post, checking the pit was not full of mud and clearing it if required and clearing foliage around it etc. When coming back the man was gone so I checked it. Foliage sort of cleared, Hydrant post painted, hydrant plate not painted, hydrant pit full of mud and unable to see hydrant, any signs of hydrant test of flow of water none. This hydrant is outside 3 isolated houses and one of them has thatch and the other two are 17 century timber framed ( all high Risk).

Send in an anonymous report to his superiors. The guy should be sacked.

 

[bootneck02]

I still know people in the fire service and had a word with a couple of senior officers and the guy had a final written warning.

 

[CryZ]

Respect to firemen. They do save lives.

 

[V_R]

At the top of the Eden Project lookout last week....

 

[Ian]

At the top of the Eden Project lookout last week....

You picked a good time to go on holiday .

 

[V_R]

Ha! You say that. but the weather was a bit crap for the last half of the week!

That pic is from the walkway at the top of the Rain forest Biome, which is basically a great big greenhouse!

 

[Abarbarian]

I'd love to go to the Eden Project again it was a tad early in the year when I went. Got to be one of the best attractions in the UK. If only it was not right at the end of the known world.