“By taking a stand, we can make a difference”
Campaigners have welcomed news that plans to shut five on call fire stations across North Wales have been scrapped by the North Wales Fire and Rescue Authority.
Catrin Wager, who set up a petition to fight ‘Option 3’ which would have seen the number of frontline firefighters slashed by 74 across North Wales, and 5 on-call stations shut, said she was delighted at the news: "The NWFRA's decision today to take options 2 and 3 off the table mean the most extreme measures to cut one in eight firefighters across north Wales have been effectively scrapped.”
"People in Conwy, Cerrigydrudion and beyond were horrified at the thought of losing their local fire stations, and objected strongly to the huge loss of 74 front line posts. Should we ever need the fire service, we would all want them to be able to get there as quickly as possible. The drastic cuts that were being suggested would have put lives at risk, and I think people saw that.”
Councillor Gwennol Ellis, who represents one of the communities who would have lost their fire station agrees. As she explains “We live in a rural area and our remote farms can be hard to find. The crew here are local, and they are best placed to get to a fire quickly because they know the area so well, and they are just down the road. Closing this station would have been a huge loss for the community.
The petition started by Catrin Wager and Councillor Ellis reached 427 signatures. Catrin Wager notes that:
“The fact that so many people signed our petition demonstrates the strength of feeling that exists on this issue. It also shows that by coming together to take a stand against things that are wrong, we can make a difference. Thank you to everyone who signed, our voices were heard. And thank you to the Fire and Rescue Authority for listening.”
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