EMERGENCY SERVICES
INTRODUCTION
This report sets out a summary of the activities and performance of Carlow County Council's Fire Authority during 2016.
Here under lies a summary of the main areas of activity undertaken by the staff within the fire authority during the 12 month period and statistics provided where required. The areas summarised are as follows:
In December 2016 Carlow County Fire & Rescue Service underwent a full Re-Assessment and re-accreditation of our Occupational Health and Safety Management System (OHSAS 1800:1) from the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI). This was a particularly challenging process in 2016 due to staff shortages. Following 2 days of intensive auditing we were recommended for re-accreditation for a further 3 years.
The system was achieved by implementing 19 policy and procedure documents each accompanied by a large number of supporting documents. The system enables the Fire service to have greater control and management of vital areas such as External Contractors, Training, Maintenance of Fleet & Equipment, Statutory Requirements and First Aid.
Capital Investments
Stations
The refurbishment and development of Muinebheag Fire Station remains one of the priority Capital Projects for the service.
In May 2016 capital approval was agreed in principle by the department of Housing in the region of €450,000 for an upgrade to the station. The extent or scope still remains a matter between Carlow County Council and the NDFEM but it is hoped that approval to proceed to tender stage will be forthcoming during the early stages of 2017.
As part of the OSHAS 18001 Safety Management Audit it was identified that the electrical wiring in Muinebheag Fire Station was sub-standard, and unable to achieve test certification. It is proposed to completely re-wire the fire station, and to install an Emergency Lighting system, and a Fire Detection and Alarm System. This essential work will now be integrated into the capital programme subject to the extent of funding available.
Vehicles
Departmental approval was given in mid 2015 for the purchase of 1 number class B fire appliance. This was part of a joint procurement process involving Tipperary, Wexford, Limerick & Carlow, with Tipperary being the lead authority. The contract was won by Sidean Teo, from Spideal, Co. Galway, & by the end of 2016, the Carlow fire appliance build was well advanced & delivery of this vehicle is promised by end of March 2017. The total cost of this investment is €290,000
In April 2016 capital approval was granted for a new water tanker chassis to replace a water tanker stationed at Carlow which was lost at a road traffic incident in 2014. The tender for the build on this vehicle was awarded to HPMP in Tullow and delivery is promised April 2017. Capital approval of €84,000 was granted for this vehicle.
Capital approval of €36,000 was given for a new response vehicle for the senior officers in Carlow and a Ford Kuga four - wheel Drive was delivered June 2016.
Training Centre
Capital approval of €440,000 was granted for construction of a new 2 - storey building to facilitate changing, shower, toilet, drying facilities and medical treatment at ground floor with 2 number training rooms at first floor. The contract was awarded to John Grey construction in September and it is anticipated that the construction will be finished in July 2017.
Total Capital Grant Approval 2016
Operational Activities
Fire Brigade Mobilisations
The level of operational activity throughout the County for 2016 compared with operational activity for 2015 is set out hereunder.
53% of all mobilisations were fire calls in County Carlow, with a further 8% of fire calls in other Counties
Road Traffic Collisons constituted 21% of Fire Service mobilisaitons
False Alarms - Good Intent (both equipment failures, and good intent fire calls) constituted 12% of Fire Service mobilisaitons
Other fire calls, including miscellaneous call, malicious calls, and non-fire rescues constituted 6% of Fire Calls, during 2016.
The chart below shows all Fires Calls by type for Carlow County Fire & Rescue Service attendances.
Forest/Bog/Grass fires comprise 21% of all mobilisations
Chimney Fires represents 17% of mobilisations
Domestic dwelling fires constitute 16% of mobilisations
Vehicle fires constituted 12% of mobilisations
All combined, these 5 fire call types constitute 79% of all Fire Call Mobilisations of Carlow County Fire & Rescue Service.
Social Media and Community Connectivity
In June 2016, Carlow County Fire & Rescue Service launched a new Facebook page, it is anticipated that this platform will provide the Fire Service with the means and tools necessary to provide information to the public, in relation to incidents, Major Emergencies, Fire Safety, Building Control, Road Safety, and other critical information. The use of this platform will also coincide with National initiatives being created or developed to further enhance and promote safety and public awareness of the dangers of fire in the home and community.
Training and Development
The training and development of personnel across a wide range of disciplines was undertaken during the year in accordance with the brigade training programme for 2016. The annual training programme is developed each year following consultation at all levels across the service. This consultation ensures that the training provided at a significant cost to the Fire Authority is relevant, and meets the needs of the firefighters, officers, administrative and other technical and support personnel.
In 2016, training was provided to firefighters in the following areas:
On Station Training
Weekly on Station Training in all brigades is undertaken in accordance with the Annual On-Station Training Programmes issued to each Station Officer and under the supervision of a Senior Officer. Attendance at weekly on-station training remains very high in all four brigades which is encouraging and confirms that the firefighters are committed to ensuring that their knowledge and skills are continually refreshed.
Expenditure 2016
The table below sets out the total expenditure for the Fire Authority for the year 2016
Carlow Extrication Team
Carlow County Fire & Rescue Service has been at the forefront of vehicle extrication and patient care for numerous years, from its involvement in the first National Extrication Challenge back in 1992 through to the establishment of Rescue Organisation Ireland in 2008.
During this time Carlow have competed successfully on the world stage at the following events organised by the World Rescue Organisation:
Capetown, South Africa 2006
Barcelona, Spain 2007
Cardiff, Wales 2008
Frankfurt, Germany 2009
Cork, Ireland 2010
London, England 2012
Clearwater, Florida 2013
Morton on Marsh, England 2014
Lisbon, Portugal 2015
In 2016, Carlow finished second overall in the National Rescue Organisation of Ireland's (ROI) challenge in Ashbourne, Co. Meath last May. We qualified to represent Ireland at the WRO event in Brazil last October but decided not to travel due to high costs and logistics of travel. The team will train and compete again in 2017 with the opportunity to travel to the WRO event in Romania in September.
Hacketstown Training Centre
The training centre based at Hacketstown Fire Station continues to provide essential Breathing Apparatus and Compartment Fire Behaviour training to fire service personnel in County Carlow and also to personnel across the Country. The centre increased its level of activity in 2016, when compared with the use and operation of the centre in 2015.
The Training Centre has hosted training courses from Fire Services in Counties Wexford, Laois, Meath, Offally, Donegal, Waterford, and from the Defence Forces.
Capital development of the Training Centre commenced in 2016. A Part VIII planning application for the development of lands purchased adjacent to the Fire Station went before the March sitting of the County Council.
The Fire and Rescue service sees this as a huge opportunity to further enhance and strengthen our links with local industry and with the community. It is planned to undertake a feasibility study to explore the possibility to further developing the provision of training to the public and private sectors and thereby generate income for the service. The Fire & Rescue Service has attained considerable expertise and experience through the development of in-house Instructors to operate and deliver high class training at the centre
Major Emergency Management
In 2016, the Local Authority's of the South East Region continued to chair both the Regional Working Group and Regional Steering Group. Mr. Dan McInerney, Acting Chief Executive, Carlow County Council is currently the Chair of the Regional Steering Group and Mr. Niall Curtin, Chief Fire Officer, Waterford County and City Fire Service is currently the chair of the Regional Working Group.
A Severe Weather related Major Emergency Exercise was held in the South East Region during January 2016 in County Waterford.
The Regional MEM Training programme was delivered through the work of the Training and Exercise MEM Sub-Group.
The fit out of the Major Emergency Equipment Pod, and associated Prime Mover, located at Bagenalstown Fire Station was completed in the second quarter of 2016. It is now available to be mobilised across the South East Region and beyond to support of the functions of an On-Site Co-ordination Centre.
Fire Prevention, Community Fire Safety & Building Control
Fire Safety Schools Programme
The fire safety schools programme again saw local firefighters deliver the National Fire Safety programme to 3rd class children in primary schools across the County with great success. Much very positive feedback has been received from teachers and parents alike.
National Smoke Alarm Programme
The National Smoke Alarm programme again saw local firefighters deliver and install smoke alarms to many vunerable members of our community across the county. Smoke alarms have been given out to many people over the last number of years and this programme will again be implemented in 2017.
Fire Safety Inspections
The Fire Authority has carried out 105 inspections under the Fire Services Act 1981 & 2003, including During Performance Inspections of venues during an event, in a range of building purpose groups such as Residential Apartments, shops, offices, and Assembly and Recreation buildings 2016. This represents an increase of 23 inspections on the previous year.
In addition, the Fire Authority served 2 Fire Safety Notice and 2 Closure Notices in 2016.
Intoxicating Liquor Licenses
The Fire Authority received and processed 87 License Applications for various premises throughout the county under the Fire Services Act 1981 & 2003 in 2015.
Dangerous Substances License Applications
The Fire Authority received and processed 4 License Applications for various premises throughout the county under the Dangerous Substances Act 1972 & 1979, thus far in 2016.
Explosives Registration Applications
The Fire Authority received and processed 0 Explosives Registration Notifications for various premises throughout the county under the Explosives Act 1875, during 2016.
Planning
The Planning Authority forwarded a total of 286 Planning Application files to the Fire Authority in 2016, which were processed, reports generated, and returned.
Building Control
Fire Safety Certificates
The Building Control Authority received a total of 42 Fire Safety Certificate Applications in 2016, which represents an increase in the number of Fire Safety Certificates received, when compared with 2015. The level of activity noted in 2013 and 2014 was mainly due to the high level of inspections and enforcement being carried out by Building Control Inspectors. A number of complex regularisation certificate applications submitted in previous years were brought to conclusion in 2016.
Disability Access Certificates
The Building Control Authority received and processed a total of 42 Disability Access Certificate applications in 2016, an increase of 23 on the 19 Disability Access Certificate applications received in 2015. This has been the largest number of Disability Access Certificates received by the Fire Authority in any given year. 2016 is also the first year that the number of Disability Access Certificates equate with the number of Fire Safety Certificates.
Commencement Notices
The Building Control Authority received 113 Commencement Notices in 2016. This is 5 more than 2015.
Building Control Inspections
A total of 143 Building Control Inspections have been undertaken throughout the County in 2016. Emphasis was placed on the importance of compliance with the Building Regulations and the Building Control Authority was and continues to encourage and advise private businesses and members of the public in relation to same. In addition to the Building Control Inspections, 105 Fire Safety Inspections were also carried out during 2016.
This report sets out a summary of the activities and performance of Carlow County Council's Fire Authority during 2016.
Here under lies a summary of the main areas of activity undertaken by the staff within the fire authority during the 12 month period and statistics provided where required. The areas summarised are as follows:
- Health & Safety Management
- Capital Investments
- Operational Activity & Training
- Training Centre Activity & Development
- Budgets
- Rescue Team Activity
- Major Emergency Management
- Fire Prevention
- Building Control
In December 2016 Carlow County Fire & Rescue Service underwent a full Re-Assessment and re-accreditation of our Occupational Health and Safety Management System (OHSAS 1800:1) from the National Standards Authority of Ireland (NSAI). This was a particularly challenging process in 2016 due to staff shortages. Following 2 days of intensive auditing we were recommended for re-accreditation for a further 3 years.
The system was achieved by implementing 19 policy and procedure documents each accompanied by a large number of supporting documents. The system enables the Fire service to have greater control and management of vital areas such as External Contractors, Training, Maintenance of Fleet & Equipment, Statutory Requirements and First Aid.
Capital Investments
Stations
As part of the OSHAS 18001 Safety Management Audit it was identified that the electrical wiring in Muinebheag Fire Station was sub-standard, and unable to achieve test certification. It is proposed to completely re-wire the fire station, and to install an Emergency Lighting system, and a Fire Detection and Alarm System. This essential work will now be integrated into the capital programme subject to the extent of funding available.
Vehicles
Departmental approval was given in mid 2015 for the purchase of 1 number class B fire appliance. This was part of a joint procurement process involving Tipperary, Wexford, Limerick & Carlow, with Tipperary being the lead authority. The contract was won by Sidean Teo, from Spideal, Co. Galway, & by the end of 2016, the Carlow fire appliance build was well advanced & delivery of this vehicle is promised by end of March 2017. The total cost of this investment is €290,000
In April 2016 capital approval was granted for a new water tanker chassis to replace a water tanker stationed at Carlow which was lost at a road traffic incident in 2014. The tender for the build on this vehicle was awarded to HPMP in Tullow and delivery is promised April 2017. Capital approval of €84,000 was granted for this vehicle.
Capital approval of €36,000 was given for a new response vehicle for the senior officers in Carlow and a Ford Kuga four - wheel Drive was delivered June 2016.
Training Centre
Capital approval of €440,000 was granted for construction of a new 2 - storey building to facilitate changing, shower, toilet, drying facilities and medical treatment at ground floor with 2 number training rooms at first floor. The contract was awarded to John Grey construction in September and it is anticipated that the construction will be finished in July 2017.
Total Capital Grant Approval 2016
| Approval Type | Sum Approved € |
|---|---|
| Class B Fire Appliance | 290,000 |
| Water Tanker Chasis | 84,000 |
| Senior Officer Vehicle | 36,000 |
| Training Centre Development | 440,000 |
| Bagenalstown (Pending) | 450,000 |
| Total | 1,300,000 |
Fire Brigade Mobilisations
The level of operational activity throughout the County for 2016 compared with operational activity for 2015 is set out hereunder.
| Number of Incidents | ||
| Station | 2015 | 2016 | Carlow Fire Brigade | 209 | 210 | Bagenalstown Fire Brigade | 120 | 90 | Tullow Fire Brigade | 90 | 88 | Hacketstown Fire Brigade | 17 | 26 | Total | 436 | 414 |
Road Traffic Collisons constituted 21% of Fire Service mobilisaitons
False Alarms - Good Intent (both equipment failures, and good intent fire calls) constituted 12% of Fire Service mobilisaitons
Other fire calls, including miscellaneous call, malicious calls, and non-fire rescues constituted 6% of Fire Calls, during 2016.
Chimney Fires represents 17% of mobilisations
Domestic dwelling fires constitute 16% of mobilisations
Vehicle fires constituted 12% of mobilisations
All combined, these 5 fire call types constitute 79% of all Fire Call Mobilisations of Carlow County Fire & Rescue Service.
Social Media and Community Connectivity
In June 2016, Carlow County Fire & Rescue Service launched a new Facebook page, it is anticipated that this platform will provide the Fire Service with the means and tools necessary to provide information to the public, in relation to incidents, Major Emergencies, Fire Safety, Building Control, Road Safety, and other critical information. The use of this platform will also coincide with National initiatives being created or developed to further enhance and promote safety and public awareness of the dangers of fire in the home and community.
Training and Development
The training and development of personnel across a wide range of disciplines was undertaken during the year in accordance with the brigade training programme for 2016. The annual training programme is developed each year following consultation at all levels across the service. This consultation ensures that the training provided at a significant cost to the Fire Authority is relevant, and meets the needs of the firefighters, officers, administrative and other technical and support personnel.
In 2016, training was provided to firefighters in the following areas:
- Breathing Apparatus
- Compartment Fire Behaviour
- CAFS
- Pumping Operations
- Fire-Fighter Develoment
- First Responder Training
- Hydraulic Platform
- Driver Training
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Weekly on Station Training in all brigades is undertaken in accordance with the Annual On-Station Training Programmes issued to each Station Officer and under the supervision of a Senior Officer. Attendance at weekly on-station training remains very high in all four brigades which is encouraging and confirms that the firefighters are committed to ensuring that their knowledge and skills are continually refreshed.
The table below sets out the total expenditure for the Fire Authority for the year 2016
| Estimate | Balance | |
|---|---|---|
| BUILDING CONTROL INSPECTION COSTS | 63000 | -520.36 |
| BUILDING CONTROL ENFORCEMENT - STAFF COSTS | 43800 | 9289.61 |
| EMERGENCY PLANNING | 45300 | 25861.11 |
| ACFO REGIONAL | 83300 | 32733.52 |
| FIRE SERVICE PROVIDED BY OTHER LOCAL AUTH | 30000 | -12321.7 |
| FIRE SERVICE HEALTH AND SAFETY | 23300 | 5088.81 | EAST REGION CONTROL CENTRE | 61000 | 0 |
| FIRE STATION CARLOW | 675000 | -75321.29 |
| FIRE STATION TULLOW | 311800 | -36014.29 |
| FIRE STATION BAGENALSTOWN | 419800 | 20733.35 | FIRE STATION HACKETSTOWN | 234800 | -31816.21 |
| SICK PAY - RETAINED FIRE SERVICE | 0 | -41966.11 |
| FIRE SERVICE TRAINING CARLOW | 51000 | 14150.44 |
| FIRE SERVICE TRAINING TULLOW | 35000 | 14345.98 | FIRE SERVICE TRAINING BAGENALSTOWN | 35000 | 14483.2 |
| FIRE SERVICE TRAINING HACKETSTOWN | 25000 | -2738.38 |
| OPERATION COSTS TRAINING FACILITY HACKETSTOWN | 58800 | -66690.43 |
| FIRE SAFETY CONTROL CERT COSTS | 74300 | 4777.53 | FIRE PREVENTION AND EDUCATION | 20500 | 7049.97 | INSPECTION & MONITORING OF COMMERCIAL FACILITIES | 39300 | 23.62 | 2,330,000 | -118,851 |
Carlow County Fire & Rescue Service has been at the forefront of vehicle extrication and patient care for numerous years, from its involvement in the first National Extrication Challenge back in 1992 through to the establishment of Rescue Organisation Ireland in 2008.
During this time Carlow have competed successfully on the world stage at the following events organised by the World Rescue Organisation:
Capetown, South Africa 2006
Barcelona, Spain 2007
Cardiff, Wales 2008
Frankfurt, Germany 2009
Cork, Ireland 2010
London, England 2012
Clearwater, Florida 2013
Morton on Marsh, England 2014
Lisbon, Portugal 2015
In 2016, Carlow finished second overall in the National Rescue Organisation of Ireland's (ROI) challenge in Ashbourne, Co. Meath last May. We qualified to represent Ireland at the WRO event in Brazil last October but decided not to travel due to high costs and logistics of travel. The team will train and compete again in 2017 with the opportunity to travel to the WRO event in Romania in September.
The training centre based at Hacketstown Fire Station continues to provide essential Breathing Apparatus and Compartment Fire Behaviour training to fire service personnel in County Carlow and also to personnel across the Country. The centre increased its level of activity in 2016, when compared with the use and operation of the centre in 2015.
The Training Centre has hosted training courses from Fire Services in Counties Wexford, Laois, Meath, Offally, Donegal, Waterford, and from the Defence Forces.
Capital development of the Training Centre commenced in 2016. A Part VIII planning application for the development of lands purchased adjacent to the Fire Station went before the March sitting of the County Council.
The Fire and Rescue service sees this as a huge opportunity to further enhance and strengthen our links with local industry and with the community. It is planned to undertake a feasibility study to explore the possibility to further developing the provision of training to the public and private sectors and thereby generate income for the service. The Fire & Rescue Service has attained considerable expertise and experience through the development of in-house Instructors to operate and deliver high class training at the centre
Major Emergency Management
In 2016, the Local Authority's of the South East Region continued to chair both the Regional Working Group and Regional Steering Group. Mr. Dan McInerney, Acting Chief Executive, Carlow County Council is currently the Chair of the Regional Steering Group and Mr. Niall Curtin, Chief Fire Officer, Waterford County and City Fire Service is currently the chair of the Regional Working Group.
A Severe Weather related Major Emergency Exercise was held in the South East Region during January 2016 in County Waterford.
The Regional MEM Training programme was delivered through the work of the Training and Exercise MEM Sub-Group.
The fit out of the Major Emergency Equipment Pod, and associated Prime Mover, located at Bagenalstown Fire Station was completed in the second quarter of 2016. It is now available to be mobilised across the South East Region and beyond to support of the functions of an On-Site Co-ordination Centre.
Fire Prevention, Community Fire Safety & Building Control
Fire Safety Schools Programme
The fire safety schools programme again saw local firefighters deliver the National Fire Safety programme to 3rd class children in primary schools across the County with great success. Much very positive feedback has been received from teachers and parents alike.
National Smoke Alarm Programme
The National Smoke Alarm programme again saw local firefighters deliver and install smoke alarms to many vunerable members of our community across the county. Smoke alarms have been given out to many people over the last number of years and this programme will again be implemented in 2017.
Fire Safety Inspections
The Fire Authority has carried out 105 inspections under the Fire Services Act 1981 & 2003, including During Performance Inspections of venues during an event, in a range of building purpose groups such as Residential Apartments, shops, offices, and Assembly and Recreation buildings 2016. This represents an increase of 23 inspections on the previous year.
In addition, the Fire Authority served 2 Fire Safety Notice and 2 Closure Notices in 2016.
The Fire Authority received and processed 87 License Applications for various premises throughout the county under the Fire Services Act 1981 & 2003 in 2015.
Dangerous Substances License Applications
The Fire Authority received and processed 4 License Applications for various premises throughout the county under the Dangerous Substances Act 1972 & 1979, thus far in 2016.
Explosives Registration Applications
The Fire Authority received and processed 0 Explosives Registration Notifications for various premises throughout the county under the Explosives Act 1875, during 2016.
Planning
The Planning Authority forwarded a total of 286 Planning Application files to the Fire Authority in 2016, which were processed, reports generated, and returned.
Fire Safety Certificates
The Building Control Authority received a total of 42 Fire Safety Certificate Applications in 2016, which represents an increase in the number of Fire Safety Certificates received, when compared with 2015. The level of activity noted in 2013 and 2014 was mainly due to the high level of inspections and enforcement being carried out by Building Control Inspectors. A number of complex regularisation certificate applications submitted in previous years were brought to conclusion in 2016.
The Building Control Authority received and processed a total of 42 Disability Access Certificate applications in 2016, an increase of 23 on the 19 Disability Access Certificate applications received in 2015. This has been the largest number of Disability Access Certificates received by the Fire Authority in any given year. 2016 is also the first year that the number of Disability Access Certificates equate with the number of Fire Safety Certificates.
The Building Control Authority received 113 Commencement Notices in 2016. This is 5 more than 2015.
A total of 143 Building Control Inspections have been undertaken throughout the County in 2016. Emphasis was placed on the importance of compliance with the Building Regulations and the Building Control Authority was and continues to encourage and advise private businesses and members of the public in relation to same. In addition to the Building Control Inspections, 105 Fire Safety Inspections were also carried out during 2016.
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Carlow County Council, Athy Road, Carlow. R93 E7R7 Tel. +353 59 9170300. |