Omicron: Fire station left with no firefighters on duty as brigade deals with severe shortages

An entire fire station in Hampshire was left with no firefighters available for duty, after the spread of the Omicron variant hit the fire and rescue service, the Fire Brigades Union has said.

Gosport fire station had no rostered firefighters available on the night of the 28 December, meaning that firefighters had to be moved from another local fire station to cover.

The union also revealed multiple other stations have also been left with fire engines unavailable due to staff shortages because of the virus.

It added the incident at the end of December is part of a wider pattern of shortages in the area, thought to be related to Covid.

In the period from the 28 December to the 2 January, numerous fire stations were short-staffed on a further three days. 

On all four days, multiple fire stations were so short-staffed that they were left with fire engines unavailable.

This was at a highpoint on the 28 December, with five engines unavailable.

The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service had around 40 people self-isolating with Covid as of the 28th of December.

Mark Chapman, regional secretary for Region 12 of the Fire Brigades Union, said, “The service is at an absolutely threadbare level of cover.

"We even had one fire station essentially left without any firefighters, having to borrow firefighters from another station.

He added, "As Omicron takes grip across the country that’s something we’ll continue to see in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight and more widely.

"That’s because the government has cut the fire and rescue service to its bare bones, with Hampshire losing almost one in five of its firefighters since 2010, and the Isle of Wight losing more than one in four in that same period.”

As of 3/1/22, we had 64 firefighters off with Covid / self-isolating and that represents 4.4% of the workforce. 

In a statement, Area Manager Kevin Evenett, Assistant Director of Operations for Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service, said, “Like all emergency services, we have robust contingency plans in place to cover staff absences and keep those plans under review to make sure we can continue to respond when needed.

"This includes moving firefighters and fire engines around when necessary to maintain cover.

“All colleagues have been reminded about the importance of protecting themselves and others from Covid-19 and this includes wearing face masks, practicing social distancing where possible, using lateral flow tests, and isolating when necessary."

Area Manager Kevin Evenett said: “Gosport Fire Station was fully crewed on 28 December.

"Staff absences unrelated to Covid-19 were managed in line with our contingency plans and personnel were moved around to maintain cover.”