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Belsize Liberal Democrats
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Save Belsize Fire Station!
by Tom Simon on 30 November, 2012
Cllr Tom Simon (left) is campaigning to save the local fire station
Conservative Mayor Boris Johnson is planning budget cuts that could see 17 London fire stations closed, including our one here in Belsize.
The Mayor is demanding the fire brigade find £65m in savings in the next two years. Modelling of what this might mean shows it could force the closure of 17 stations and the loss of about 30 fire engines.
“This is a huge cut to the front line of London’s fire cover,” said Belsize Councillor Tom Simon. “There are big questions about what this cut would mean if there was a major emergency in central London. If our local station closed, I would be very concerned about the cover in Belsize and Camden generally. Belsize fire station is the second busiest one-engine fire station in London.”
Your local Councillors are working with Lib Dems in City Hall to challenge the Mayor over his plans. Please get in touch if you are concerned about this potential closure.
I am extremely concerned about the possible closure of Belsize Park Fire Station as I believe this would result in a significant increase in the response time to incidents in the area.
as a long term resident in Lancaster Grove I feel strongly about the positive presence of the local fire station. It has enormous architectural interest beside its practical function. Lancaster Grove is special in many ways and the loss of the fire station would be of disservice to the community.
I totally oppose the closure of this – or, indeed, ANY – fire station(s). A fire anywhere must be one of the most terrifying incidents – I would certainly be so afraid that I wouldn’t know what to do – and it must surely be obvious that the sooner the fire service can reach the property and help those inside the building the less serious the consequences of the fire would be. This closure – and any others proposed – could COST LIVES! I do realise that cuts have been ordered but there MUST be alternatives which would not risk this. PLEASE RE-CONSIDER!
This is terrible. But we need to be able to fight fire with fire. Does anyone have any statistics about how cost effective our beloved fire station has been?
This is outrageous!Saving people’s lives is not something you can commodify . If this was an area where Boris lived I am sure he would not be making savings there! He is also affecting firefighters lives, who are people completely undervalued for the risks that they take . This society is all about money and not about people and their rights and deserved dignity and respect.
Please don’t let them close our local (and busy) Belsize Fire Station. This will jeopardise our safety in this densely populated area.
It is imperative we keep this fire station open – the idea that any other station could be with us within the target requirement is farcical. We have needed a fire station in this area for 70 years – why suddenly do we not need one? And we know that the real reason is the huge value of this piece of property – it is appalling.