Motorists blocking road with bad parking abuse fire crew

Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service (LFRS) said firefighters come across more and more streets where fire engines cannot pass to get to a call-out.Crews are expected to get to incidents within five minutes of a 999 call getting placed, but warn response times are being affected by motorists’ poor parking blocking access.

Crews have even been abused by motorists when asked to move.Group manager of response and emergency planning, Tim Murrell, said: “We are hearing from crews that certain areas of Lancashire are becoming problematic for fire engines passing between cars. “Allowing fire engines, and other emergency vehicles, clear access down residential streets could make all the difference when attending to emergencies. “Seconds count, especially in persons reported incidents, and we are urging the public to please park considerately.”Motorists need to leave at least 8.2ft to allow an engined to pass.

And it isn’t just emergency situations where inconsiderate parking becomes an issue. Lancashire firefighters visit domestic properties to carry out Home Fire Safety Checks and need access to residential streets in their fire engines. On one such occasion a crew couldn’t pass between two inconsiderately parked cars and received verbal abuse from the owners when they were asked to move.

A spokesman said: "Thankfully LFRS have not been late to an incident, nor lives been put in danger due to inconsiderate parking, however the Service would like to draw people’s attention to the potential risks of parking considerately and urge them to think about where they park going forward."