It was a busy Bonfire Night for West Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service (WYFRS) with over 500 calls received by our Control Room over the course of the evening (between 1700 hrs and 0100 hrs). Staff in the Control Room and firefighters out across West Yorkshire worked tirelessly, with crews attending incidents and heroes in headsets overseeing operations.
In total the Fire Service attended 149 incidents across West Yorkshire – with 66 of those incidents being bonfire related (note, not all calls require an attendance, some are duplicates, and in some cases advice can be given). While thousands of people celebrated safely, there were sadly some pockets of disorder involving the misuse of fireworks.
Unfortunately, this included three separate attacks on fire engines in Bradford, Keighley and the Harehills area of Leeds. Fortunately there were no injuries reported. Tactical Commander for the Bonfire period, Benjy Bush said: “The majority of people celebrated safely however there were unfortunately some incidents of reckless behaviour with fireworks across West Yorkshire including attacks on fire engines which we condemn.
“The level of attacks has been fewer than in some recent years – but any attack on our crews who are working hard to keep the public safe is one too many.
“However, what we’d really like to focus on is the vast majority of the public who celebrated safely, whether it was attending an organised bonfire or hosting small celebrations at home. We would also like to thank our partner agencies, community volunteers and community leaders who have pulled together supporting us around the bonfire period.
“As usual Bonfire Night has been one of our busiest nights of the year – and I’d like to pay tribute to our staff who worked really hard to keep people safe and quickly deal with any fires that got out of control.”
Banstead Park, Harehills – Fireworks attack on fire engine
Redcliffe Street, Keighley – Fireworks attack on fire engine
Rugby Place, Lidget Green, Bradford – Fireworks attack on fire engine
For anyone who is planning on having a bonfire this weekend, please follow the advice on our website including top tips to keep you and your family safe.
Follow @WYFRS #BanginBon
