The Chief Fire Officer for Devon and Somerset, Gavin Ellis, has written to all the papers and local authorities to tell them about the launch of a public consultation about how the fire services should handle falso fire alarms. 

Gavin Ellis explains. "Last year, our crews responded to an average of 16 false alarms every day due to automatic fire alarms, placing an unnecessary burden on the Service’s resources and our ability to be ready and available for genuine emergencies.  

In the last five years, we have been alerted to more than 55,000 automatic fire alarms, out of which just 42 needed the hose reel jet from one of our fire engines, which is less than 0.08%."

The Fire Service is investigating how it can reduce the number of automatic fire alarm calls, they attend to make the Service more efficient and make sure the firefighters are able to respond to genuine emergencies.

More detailed information about the consultation and a link to a public survey for feedback, is available on the Fire Service website at www.dsfire.gov.uk/about-us/AFA-consultation . There will also be opportunities during the consultation period for question and answe events.

They want  to make absolutely clear to the communities they serve, that any change is only in their response to an automatic alert and they will always attend if someone has reported a sign of fire. They will also always attend single domestic properties, such as houses, or where there is a known night-time sleeping risk. They also have a number of high risk buildings where they will also maintain a response. Details of these can be found in their consultation document.