CLEATOR Moor and its surrounding areas would be stripped of their "first" fire engine if Frizington station closes, say firefighters.

Fire chiefs would be "gambling with people's lives" by closing a station with good availability in an "already stretched" service, says a Frizington firefighter who does not wished to be named.

And the chiefs have now been accused of being "disrespectful" and misunderstanding the geography of the area in their plans by Cleator Moor town councillors.  

The firefighter said: "If there is a fire in Cleator Moor then it is usually responded to by an engine from Whitehaven and one from Frizington, but we are almost always the first ones there.

"Fire chiefs say that there are two stations within an eight mile radius, but they don't take into consideration the time it takes retained firefighters to respond to a call-out - sometimes they have to get out of bed, get to the station, prepare and get to the incident.

"And, if you live anywhere around Cleator Moor, you are going to be waiting for a very long time when retained firefighters at Whitehaven and Egremont are already occupied, which they are a lot of the time. 

"We don't want to take anything away from the other retained stations or see them closed, but why cherry-pick a station with 80 per cent availability for closure? It's beyond a joke."

Chief Fire officer Jim Onions said: “If Frizington was to close there would still be a regular full-time engine and an on-call engine stationed at Whitehaven, just over two miles from Cleator Moor, with an additional on-call crew at Egremont just over three miles away."

The anonymous firefighter added: "They also say that Cleator Moor is a low risk area. Now, I'm not going to stand for that. No disrespect to Cleator Moor, a lot of us lads are from the town, but we know that it is not the case. 

"You've also got to consider that Cleator Moor could house around 1,000 nuclear workers because of NuGen. You can't increase the population without increasing the risk." 

However, Mr Onions said full-time and on-call engines in Workington, along with Whitehaven and Egremont station are sufficient for any increase in population.

At a town council meeting, Cleator Moor town councillor, Charles Moores, said: "These plans are totally disrespectful, not just to Cleator Moor, but Frizington, Arlecdon and Lamplugh too."

The council's chairwoman, Joan Hully, said that the closure would be "one cut too far" and that the council would fight to save the station.

FRIZINGTON SCHOOL CHILDREN JOIN THE FIGHT

FRIZINGTON Primary School showed its solidarity with the village's threatened fire station with a special trip.

The whole school made the outing to see the firefighters' equipment and sit in fire engines.

Headteacher, Sarah Rose, said the outing was a chance for the school to raise awareness about the station's situation.

"We've taken the children to the fire station a lot of times and they really enjoy it," said Mrs Rose. "This is our way of showing that we are behind the station in their fight.

"It is an essential station and four of the children at our school have dads who work there. Only the other night there was an emergency in Egremont and the Frizington firefighters were the only ones there, it makes you realise how important the station is."

HOW TO FIGHT FOR FRIZINGTON STATION

The current proposals are out for consultation for three months. To find out more, go to www.cumbria.gov.uk/budgetconsultation 

To sign the online petition, visit https://you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/save-frizington-fire-station 

To join the Facebook page, search 'Save Frizington Fire Station' on the Facebook search bar.