SPECIAL REPORT: On-call firefighters rehearse for emergency callout
A four-vehicle pile-up off Fen Road, Holbeach, attended by a team of up to 50 emergency service staff left five people "injured" on Tuesday night.
The "accident" happened at a metal recycling plant near Holbeach Fire Station, a convenient location for on-call (retained) firefighters based in the town to work on a road traffic collision exercise in preparation for the real thing.
So unlike the kind of crashes that can be found in newspapers every week, the only "casualties" in Holbeach on Tuesday were firefighters and LIVES First Responders acting out their roles in the exercise.
John Kinder, acting watch manager at Holbeach Fire Station, said: "We've been working on it since February, planning a joint exercise with ourselves, Long Sutton and Market Deeping Fire and Rescue, LIVES First Responders, St John Ambulance and the police.
"The idea is that whilst we go to real jobs with everybody else, we never train with everybody else.
"So it's good to be able work with all the other agencies, finding a convenient time to get all of the equipment, an ambulance, drone pilot and helmets cameras in order to make a training video."
Hazel Bradshaw, a LIVES First Responder volunteer from Deeping St Nicholas, took the role as one of the "walking wounded" during the exercise.
She said: "I was travelling to Boston with my daughter one day when I saw a nasty accident.
"Everyone was just standing around with their mobile phones and that's what led to both me and my daughter joining LIVES.
"In rural communities, minutes matter which is what LIVES and the other emergency services are all about.
"Quite often, Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue crews practice on their own and often they don't have other services working with them as well.
"It's one thing practicing on your own, but it's a different ball game when you have other people around, all doing their jobs.
"This exercise is all about confidence but although it's just a learning experience, the scenario is serious and involves potentially life-altering injuries."
Apart from the need for on-call firefighters to have regular training and assessments, there was another motive for staging the "pile-up" exercise, as John called it.
According to recent Lincolnshire Fire and Rescue statistics, the county has about 700 firefighters and service staff, across 38 stations, serving an area of more than 2,200 square miles.
John, who combines running an electrical business n by trade said: "It's a big commitment and there's a lot to get to the stage of being a competent firefighter.
"But it's very rewarding because, at the end of the day, you're there to help people.
"You do see some quite horrific things at times but our job is, whatever the situation, to do our best to save lives."
Graham Pound, another on-call firefighter based at Holbeach who completed his two months' training programme just days before the exercise, said: "I've wanted to become ever since I was five, having watched the film 'Backdraft'.
"My uncle was a firefighter with London Fire Brigade and so I tried a few times to join it.
"Then I moved up to Holbeach in November 2017 and after sending in my applications, having an interview and tests, I was accepted for the on-call firefighters' training course.
"There were aspects of the training where I thought to myself 'I feel like a little boy' because there was so much to it than I thought.
"But now I'm competent to ride on a fire truck as a development firefighter which counts towards my coursework.
"Then in about another 18 months, I'll become a competent firefighter."
Along with Graham, 12 more new on-call firefighters finished their training at a state-of-the-art training facility in Waddington, near Lincoln, on Sunday, July 1.
Among them are Henry Cross, of Crowland, Adam Craig and Graham Minards, both of Donington, and Stewart Hill, of Market Deeping, all of whom, just like Graham, have join other firefighters within their respective crews across South Holland and the Deepings.
They could be at normal place of work when they receive a pager alert telling them to go to an emergency, such as a fire, flood, road traffic collision or even chemical spillages.
Nick Borrill, chief fire officer for Lincolnshire, said: "No one here underestimates the hard work and effort these new firefighters have put in to get to this point because completing the initial training is a real success.
"They should be proud of their achievements as they now join their colleagues around the county in protecting the communities of Lincolnshire.
"I wish them all the best for their future careers.”
Paul Barkway, watch commander support based at Spalding Fire Station, said: "One of the reasons for having this exercise is to see that the emergency services are working together and being effective.
"It's a Government-led strategy after the London terrorist attacks in 2007 when it was felt that some of the emergency services were doing different things.
"Being a retained firefighter is all about attitude, determination and being a team player because it's a real commitment."
If you are interested in training as an on-call firefighter, call 0800 3580 204 or visit www.lincolnshire.gov.uk/lfr