Fire crews travel 30 miles for vital equipment

A house fire has renewed questions over why specialist firefighting equipment is based far from some communities despite a series of major incidents requiring its use.

In Dorset, crews tackling a fire at a house in Queen's Avenue, Dorchester, had to wait for an aerial ladder to travel about 30 miles (48km) from Westbourne.

The incident is one of many in recent years where high ladder units have been brought in from Westbourne or Yeovil to tackle fires in Dorchester and Weymouth, following the withdrawal of Weymouth's own high ladder in 2018-19.

Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service said it believes its current aerial ladder fleet supports "the level of risk and demand" across the area.

According to the Local Democracy Reporting Service, the latest incident was not the first time firefighters in west Dorset had relied on specialist equipment travelling significant distances.

In July, an aerial ladder platform (ALP) based at Westbourne in Bournemouth attended a serious fire in Broadwey.

Earlier deployments included a commercial building fire in King Street, Weymouth, in January 2025, which required aerial ladder platforms from both Westbourne and Yeovil.

In August that year, another high ladder was sent from Yeovil to assist firefighters tackling a blaze at an apartment block in Brewery Square, Dorchester.

The issue reignited debate over the loss of Weymouth's own high ladder appliance, during the 2018-19 financial year.

Dorchester Mayor, Les Fry, said the fire at Brewery Square highlighted the potential implications of not having an ALP based closer to the county town.

He said: "This fire was a shame for the owners and perhaps a wakeup call for the decision makers in the fire service that there was not an aerial ladder unit closer to Dorchester than Westbourne.

"Luckily no lives were at risk on this occasion, but had they have been the outcome may have been very different."

Questions were also raised about what would happen if the Westbourne appliance was required in multiple areas at the same time.

Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service operates three aerial ladder platforms, with the other two based in Salisbury and Swindon, all of which were purchased in 2017.

The service said the Westbourne vehicle is a 42m (138ft) appliance, while the units at Salisbury and Swindon are 32m (105ft), reflecting the concentration of high-rise residential buildings in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole area.

A spokesperson said the service keeps "appliance distribution under review", taking account of risk and demand data as well as where incidents occur across the area.

They said: "Whilst there is no current plan to increase the number of ALPs across the Service, we will carry out a detailed review prior to the vehicles being replaced, in six to seven years' time."

They added that the review would be carried out earlier if required.

Assistant Chief Fire Officer Darren Langdown said: "If an incident commander requests an ALP, the nearest available will be sent, which can mean support from a neighbouring fire and rescue service in line with our partnership arrangements."

The service said its 32m (105ft), aerial ladder platforms cost £650,000 each when purchased in 2017. Based on inflation, it estimates replacements would now cost about £895,000 each.