West Sussex Fire and Rescue call for vehicle donations

West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service (WSFRS) thanked Goring Electrical Services for giving them an old van – and are now calling for others to get in contact.

The service said it relies on these donations to train firefighters in how to deal with real incidents on Sussex’s roads.

Teams will use the vehicles to practice life-saving procedures, such as using hydraulic cutting equipment to safely extract casualties who are trapped inside.

Shortly before the New Year, six more on-call firefighters completed their road traffic collision training course and used donated cars for their training.

As part of the course, Adam Newton from Shoreham Fire Station, Oliver Lewis from Burgess Hill, Robert Austen based at Steyning, Will Middleton from Bognor Regis, and Warren Boyt and David Loor from Chichester had to demonstrate their skills in responding to a road traffic collision.

Adam Newton from Shoreham Fire Station, Oliver Lewis from Burgess Hill, Robert Austen based at Steyning, Will Middleton from Bognor Regis, and Warren Boyt and David Loor from Chichester

Neil Mason, a Watch Manager in WSFRS’s Operational Training Team who oversaw the latest RTC course, said: “Firstly I would like to congratulate each of our six newly qualified retained firefighters who completed this course. Each of these retained firefighters have full-time jobs elsewhere but chose to become retained firefighters to help support their communities in their own time. It is a big commitment, as is making the time to complete training courses like this.

“We used a number of scrap vehicles as part of this course to give the firefighters the chance to experience the aftermath of a road traffic collision so that they are armed with all of the vital skills and knowledge to respond effectively in a real life emergency situation.

“I would like to say a big thank you to each of the drivers who thought of the fire service when their vehicle had reached the end of its working life and donated it to us for training. It could well have saved someone’s life.”

Several fire stations are in need of extra vehicles firefighters gain plenty of experience in rescuing casualties from inside vehicles.

Collection and removal of vehicles is managed by Mark Maynard of Autorecovery, who will travel to any address within West Sussex to collect the vehicles free of charge.

Anyone wishing to donate their car can call 07860667785.

You can also email frsmedia@westsussex.gov.uk with your name, contact number, make, model and registration of the vehicle, and whether the vehicle is taxed or SORNd.

You should also provide your full address, including a postcode, of where the vehicle is parked.