TWO North Yorkshire firefighters were sent home from their shift as part of an ongoing disagreement over the safety of new vehicles.

The Fire Brigades Union (FBU), has accused chief fire officer Nigel Hutchinson of “behaving recklessly”, after the firefighters - under union guidance - refused to crew a Tactical Response Vehicle (TRV), on its first day in operational use on Monday.

The FBU claim the new vehicles are unsafe and voted for action short of a strike, including a refusal to ride any fire service appliance or TRV with crews of only two or three riders.

Steve Howley, secretary of the FBU in North Yorkshire, said: “The actions of the CFO were uncalled for and unnecessary. He has sullied his reputation and put the safety of the public at risk. It is disgraceful that our members are being victimised by management for standing up to defend the safety of their colleagues and the public.

“The way that managers want to utilise and crew TRV’s is creating a major safety issue and moral dilemma for our firefighters. If these vehicles were the first ones to respond to a major fire, as management has indicated they could be, all they could do is survey the scene. They cannot perform rescue operations and have limited firefighting capabilities. These proposals are going to significantly increase the risk to firefighters and the public getting seriously injured or killed.”

Assistant Chief Fire Officer Owen Hayward said the industrial action has resulted in this vehicle being unavailable during some shifts.

Mr Hayward said: “Currently this issue is only affecting Scarborough fire station, as it is the only station where a TRV is due to be attending operational incidents, with a crew of three, at this time. The remaining standard fire engine at Scarborough is being crewed as normal and is available to attend incidents as required.

“It is disappointing and saddening that the FBU have chosen to take this action. There has been extensive consultation with the FBU over the last two and half years about introduction of the TRVs but they are unwilling to accept new ways of working. It is particularly disappointing that this recent notification of industrial action, which impacts on emergency fire cover, was issued on the Friday afternoon, immediately prior to the vehicle going live, therefore not allowing any discussions with the Fire Brigades Union about the action.”

Mr Hayward said plans were in place “to ensure that there is sufficient emergency fire cover in place in the Scarborough area”, and the service was still meeting with the FBU to find a resolution to the dispute.