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A UNION REPRESENTING firefighters has called for the immediate withdrawal of newly introduced breathing apparatus, saying that its members’ lives are in danger after several “serious unexplained incidents”.
The Irish Fire and Emergency Services Association said the breathing sets, which were introduced to replace outdated apparatus in Dublin late last year, had failed three times over a 12-hour period.
One firefighter was forced to evacuate a burning home in Tallaght after his mask collapsed onto his face due to lack of air, the union said. The other two incidents took place during training and equipment testing the same night last Monday.
In a statement, IFESA said such failures “have the potential to seriously injure or kill a firefighter”.
Union spokesperson Des Kavanagh said that 20 per cent of sets in Dublin are now “unserviceable”, and 60 have been taken out of use. “Many fire fighters are now seeking access to the old sets where they are available because they have lost confidence in the new breathing apparatus sets,” he said.
Right now the fire fighters and their families have serious concerns for their safety and that of the citizens they serve. If the Council do not address this serious issue immediately they must take full responsibility for the consequences of their inaction.
The latest alleged incidents come almost two weeks after firefighters initially raised concerns, citing a string of potentially dangerous failures. TheJournal.ie has seen pictures of ice forming on the sets during testing, which the union believes could cause problems with air flow.
However, Dublin City Council spokesperson Gerry Geraghty told RTÉ’s Liveline last Friday that the matter of breathing apparatus had “been resolved”. He said concerns were “hyped up” by interested parties seeking to win recognition.
Dublin Fire Brigade currently does not recognise IFESA as an official union. It says that only Siptu and Impact have negotiating rights with management.
Dublin Fire Brigade had no comment on the matter this afternoon. The Health and Safety Authority has previously confirmed that it has received correspondence from IFESA and the matter is “under active consideration”.
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outrageous example of the poor procurement policies in public service
Colm, glad to see your priorities are public service bashing, and not the lives of our emergency services personnel.
paul..im.an emergency service worker in.the public service..my point is the poor procurement policies that lead to this unacceptable risk being faced by fire service personnel whom.i regularly work ckosely with and their bravery is unquestioned. perhaps you should actually read the comment before putting your foot in your mouth. i have long and sad experience of trying to duggest proper long term planning in.the procurement of essential equipment like emergency transport. this equipment while from.a leading firefighting equipment maker has had similar difficultirs reported in other countries. im 100% behind my colleagues in fire service and other 24/7 365 ems workers. think before you comment please..that accusation wad entirely out of order
Colm, I do apologise. But from your original post, I had no idea you were a firefighter, a group of society I have utmost respect and admiration for. Simply put, I wouldn’t be brave enough to do what you guys do.
I work in the public sector, and part if my remit us procurement. I always secure the best value for my employer, not always accepting the cheapest offer. I work at this, so your original post just kinda irked me. No harm done I hope?
no.harm done. im not a firefighter but a member of AGS for 18yrs. the quality of transport sourced for us is so poor in comparison with what is availabe and in.use with PSNI and other UK services..standard family saloons with markings and equipment retrofitted…all vehicke manufacturers supply vehicles which are classed as police specials with heavy duty batteries..better brakes reinforcedcsumps and suspensions…ive visited napfm expo at own expense…yhese vehicles would provide far better value for money to yhe state/taxpayer and would give us a safer working environment…but I just drive them…ive never had my opinions canvassed despite my experience. ive also lost good friends and colleagues in.line of duty..i dont criticise procurement lightly but good reliable safe transport and transport suited to terrain is vital for my job
just to add Paul…apology accepted and definately no harm done. i realuse procurement must be pretty stressful esp in the current fiscal climate. and there have been major improvements so its not all bad..but transport is a particular concern of mine
Really? You know something about the procurement policy in this case?
Anyway feel free to take a cheap shot whenever you can.
….I’ve just read the rest of the comments….. Anyway aside from the cheap shot remark (which the opening comment sounded like) I stand by the question regarding the process.
tom…you state further on that a certain failure rate in this equipment can be tolerated(paraphrased) so thats ok.then..firefighters lives are subject to the failure rate being within the excepted tolerances! let me be quite clear: Dfb Ags and ambulance personnel and retained firefighters RELY on their equipment to SAVE you!
Tom..an example for you: honda are acknowledged (rightly so) as a leading manufacturer of motorcycles & suppliers of bespoke motorcycles to police & emergency services worldwide. their 1100cc pan european was a firm favourite with users & purchasers. however..when they increased the capacity to 1300 their were stability problems at speed culminating in.the death of a merseyside PC an experienced & highly qualified police motorcyclist. investigationscshowed that the bike could not handle high speeds as a result of the same standard equipment on the 1100. acpo and the home office switched to bmw rt1200..a huge contract lost. scott are acknowledged asca leading supplier in the firefightingvfield..this equipmentvshould be wuthdrawn from service and investigated..its in suppliers interests and the interests of the end users who rely on it. mistakes happen…but there is no room.forcerror in emergency services that is why front line operatives should be included in.pricurement process. what price a life lost?
I’m glad u made up lads
lol!
Can DCC confirm that they purchased the recommended model, not just the recommended brand?
i.e. Were they told to purchase a Toyota Hiace but ended up getting a Yaris because it was cheaper?
Scott are a worldwide brand so id imagine they would not want such negative press like this. If DCC dont act before a serious incident, then the HSA would get involved. And from that, how could any brigade, retained, FT or industrial operate these sets anywhere in the world? They couldnt and a recall would be issued and Id say Scott would consider that an absolute brand disaster.
The best of luck all fire brigades who every time they go to work they do not know what is ahead of them.Please be safe and good luck . The least that they should expect is expert equipment in perfect working order……
Yes Dario you are so Right 27 Fire Fighters were sacked /suspended in Roscommon and while they has a Labour Court hearing due but the Labour Court found in favour of the Fire Fighters
have your say