East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service has joined the national initiative, FireStoppers, inviting members of the public and businesses in a concerted effort to combat acts of arson and deliberate fire setting.
FireStoppers encourages people to share intelligence about people they suspect are responsible for incidents of arson, anonymously, 24/7, 365 days a year.
National statistics show that deliberate fires account for around 45% of all the fires attended by fire and rescue services in England. In the last five years, East Sussex crews have attended over 3,500 deliberate fires, and incidents have increased by 9.13% in 2022/23, with 729 fires attended compared to 668 the previous year.
It is a criminal offence when someone recklessly or intentionally starts a fire in order to destroy or damage something, whether that is a building, or outdoor areas such as grasslands and woodlands. It can have devastating impacts on communities and throughout the commercial sector, many businesses may fail to fully recover from an arson attack. Furthermore, the demand from responding to arson and deliberate fires may have a negative impact on the capacity to deliver prevention and protection activities.
Head of Prevention, David Kemp said, ‘’The more people we can reach with the FireStoppers initiative, and the more people that know that this service exists, increases the potential for it to act as a deterrent and reduce the number of deliberate fires, not only in East Sussex but nationally. FireStoppers allows people to report anonymously in the fight against deliberate fire setting to help keep our communities safer.’’
Help us tackle arson:
Arson and deliberate fires are a problem for the Fire Service, the Police, and the Ambulance Service. They endanger lives and divert valuable resources.
FireStoppers gives you a way to report what you know about deliberate fire setting, 100% anonymously.
Call: 0800 169 5558
Or complete the online form: www.firestoppersreport.co.uk
‘Speak up. Stay safe. Working together to keep communities safe’.
Advice for businesses:
Reducing the risk from arson is something that businesses should be considering when looking to protect both people and property. From 1st October 2023, those responsible for fire safety at non-domestic premises have a legal responsibility for carrying out and recording a fire risk assessment. Find out more about the legal changes and fire risk assessments here: Fire safety responsibilities under Section 156 of the Building Safety Act 2022 | East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service (esfrs.org)
Further information:
For practical advice on how you can play your part in combating arson, you can also visit: Arson Reduction | East Sussex Fire & Rescue Service (esfrs.org)
Always call 999 in an emergency.
