7. Utilities, fuel and power
Summary
During this period we have been focusing on water supplies, as we are increasingly finding problems with the reliability of water network in terms of its ability to provide the amount of water we need. We are also seeing more frequent periods of drought that means we cannot always rely on ponds and lakes to provide the water we need.
Update on actions
Review the capability, location, and type of vehicles and equipment providing or transporting water for firefighting.
and
Explore new firefighting equipment that uses less water to achieve the same operational outcomes.
New housing and infrastructure is putting strain on the water network. This is impacting the reliability and capacity of fire hydrants. We have raised this issue nationally through the National Fire Chiefs Council and are also working with water companies locally to identify and areas where we know there are issues. This allows us to increase the number of resources we send if we know there are issues with water supplies in a particular area.
Additionally, we are looking at what changes we can make to our vehicles and equipment to reduce the impact of a reduction in the quantity and reliability of water supplies available to us. Over the last few years, we have been installing compressed air foam systems on many of our fire engines. This system allows us to apply water and foam more efficiently, meaning in some cases we can make the water supply on a fire engine last longer. We will be looking to roll out compressed air foam systems across the fleet as part of our new fire engine builds. At the same time, we will be updating the tactics we teach to ensure our firefighters are using the water they have in the most efficient way.
When we do require larger volumes of water, we have a range of ways of achieving this. One of these ways is our bulk water carriers. We currently have two bulk water carriers, each of which holds 14,000 litres of water. These are due for replacement, so this year as part of the replacement process, we will be looking at whether to increase the number of bulk water carriers we have. It is likely that we will move to vehicles with a slightly smaller water capacity but more widely located to improve the flexibility and speed of response.