Environment Agency and Fire Service team up

The two organisations have developed a ‘hose coupling adaptor’ which will give the Environment Agency access to over 150,000 metres of hose stored by the Fire & Rescue Service at locations around the country. This will enable the Environment Agency to get pumps to the communities that need them most, more quickly in a flood.

The new kit, developed between the Environment Agency Northumberland, Durham and Tees Field Team and the County Durham & Darlington Fire & Rescue Service will benefit communities by providing access to high-volume pumps which can move as much as 7,000 litres of water per minute and can pump over a distance of 3 kilometres.

The adaptor has already been put to good use in tackling the large protracted wildfire on Saddleworth Moor, Greater Manchester during, the hot, dry summer. It is now being rolled out nationally and will play a major role in the Environment Agency’s preparations for winter flooding.

Director of incident management & resilience at the Environment Agency Caroline Douglass said, “As an emergency responder, the Environment Agency attends many incidents alongside the Fire & Rescue Service and this innovation is another great example of us working together to provide greater safety for communities across the country.

“With winter around the corner, we have 6,500 staff trained to respond to flooding and this new kit will form an important part of our preparation.”

Chair of the National Fire Chiefs Council operations coordination committee Chris Lowther said, “This new equipment is a result of excellent collaboration between the Environment Agency and the Fire & Rescue Service, which means we will be better placed to tackle flooding.

“We are committed to working alongside other blue light services and partners to ensure the best possible response is delivered to communities when they are affected by flooding. Being able to mobilise assets from across the country quickly is an essential part of our national resilience response, meaning the public can have confidence that the emergency services can and will respond quickly when needed.”

The Environment Agency continues to use new technology to prepare for and respond to floods, including investment in 40km of temporary flood barriers and 250 high volume pumps. The Environment Agency also has 6,500 trained staff across the country ready to respond to flooding, including 500 flood support officers.