A potentially suspicious flat fire in Aberdeen and a second resident blaze in Newmachar made it a busy couple of days for Aberdeen firefighters – as bosses face questions over staffing levels.
Two occupants were treated for smoke inhalation following a blaze in the city’s Hannover Street on Monday morning and police and fire have still to rule out suspicious circumstances
Firefighters were also called to a property in Newmachar’s Straloch Avenue on Sunday evening, where crews spent two hours dealing with a small blaze.
The incidents took place as it emerged a staff shortage left Aberdeen without two-thirds of its fire engines last week.
At one point on Thursday morning, there were only enough officers to man two of the city’s six appliances.
While more crew members were found after an hour – bringing the total number of available engines to four – the two vehicles based at Altens were non-operational from 8am to 6pm.
Concerns have been raised over how this was allowed to happen and the implications it could have on safety, though the fire service has said the area was “fully protected” through its planning strategy.
North-east Labour MSP Lewis Macdonald said: “It begs the question of how often this happens.
“Clearly, the level of fire cover is a real issue to everybody in the city and across the country.
“You have to wonder how many more times this has happened in the last five years since the creation of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.
“If we have a situation where half the units are unavailable to operate, there is a real issue if something serious transpires over the course of that day.”
Bruce Farquharson, the senior fire officer for Aberdeen City, said: “We can confirm that two appliances at Altens Community Fire Station were off the run from 8am to 6pm on Thursday March 29.
“For one hour on the same day, an additional two pumps were off the run in the Aberdeen City area.
“At no point was firefighter or community safety compromised.
“The community was fully protected through our robust strategic planning which ensured cover was maintained at all times.
“The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service continues to attend at every emergency.”
