FIREFIGHTERS who have reluctantly started an eight-day strike today believe they have the blessing of people across the two counties, a union boss claims.

At a blaze hours before the strike began, people flocked to give their support, said Steve Laugher, the Fire Brigades Union's Hereford and Worcester branch secretary.

"We think that people are behind us," said Sub Officer Laugher, who is based at the city's Deansway station.

"At all of the incidents we have attended there has been a lot of support for us.

"We attended a fire in Rushwick at about 1am today and the lady whose house it was, and all her neighbours, were bringing us tea."

He revealed that city firefighters were "apprehensive" about striking, but felt it was their only option.

"I really don't know what will happen in the end, but at this present moment it's not looking good," added Mr Laugher, who has been in the fire service for 26 years.

"The Government seems to block any progress every time. Who knows what will happen, but none of us actually wants to go on strike."

Alec Mackie, a spokesman for Hereford and Worcester Fire Brigade, assured people a first-class fire service would still be provided.

"If there's a fire in your property, dial 999 and ask for the fire brigade and you will get a response," he said.

He urged people to look out for friends and neighbours and make sure smoke alarms were fitted.

"Green Goddesses will be doing the business during the strike," he added.

"They might be old in terms of the years in which they have lived since being made, but they are in pristine working order.

"They might not be able to zoom around, not that frontline fire engines zoom around either as they have public safety in mind.

"Fire engines do reach 50 or 60mph, but on clear roads or motorways."

He revealed that Green Goddesses were also able to carry more water than the red fire engines.

Be vigilant and reduce fire risk

OFFICE

In the event of a fire everyone should evacuate to a place of safety.

Door fastenings on exit routes and final exits must be easy to open.

All fire-resisting structures should be maintained i.e. staircases, doors.

All self-closing mechanisms on fire-resisting doors should be working correctly.

All exit routes and exits should be adequately signed, illuminated and unobstructed.

Keep escape routes clear.

Ensure an emergency/evacuation plan is in place and that you carry out regular fire drills.

Make sure that all the premises' doors and windows are securely locked at the end of each day's work.

Identify people at risk, such as lone workers or workers in remote areas or workers unable to react quickly.

Visitors or members of the public likely to be unfamiliar with escape routes.

Implement a no smoking policy.

Store any flammables and combustible material securely.

Dispose of waste materials promptly and safely.

Check electrical installations and equipment are working correctly and free from damage.

Ensure all fire safety systems are working.

Are there sufficient extinguishers and hose reels and have they been tested/serviced and can they be easily seen?

HOME

Working smoke alarms save lives and should be fitted on every floor of your home and tested weekly.

Make a fire escape plan. Choose the best escape route and an alternative. Keep escape routes clear.

Tell everyone where the door and window keys are, and make them readily available.

Rehearse your plan, while you can.

Extinguish smoking materials and candles properly.

Switch off and unplug all electrical equipment not designed to be left on overnight.

Close all doors that open on to your escape route, except a door to a room where someone is sleeping.

Keep keys to doors and windows easily accessible.

Do not leave cooking unattended. n Keep your cooker clean, especially the grill pan.

Keep combustibles away from the cooker.

Never leave lit cigarettes or pipes unattended.

Do not smoke where you may fall asleep.

Dispose of safely.

How it led up to the walk-out

THE eight-day strike followed accusations that the Government was behind a last-minute intervention which "wrecked" the chance of a peace deal.

Talks throughout the night were on the verge of achieving a dramatic deal but, just three hours before the strike was due to start, the Government intervened.

Andy Gilchrist, general secretary of the Fire Brigades Union, said it was with a sense of "incredible regret" that the strike would go ahead.

He said his union's executive had decided to suspend the strike after a new pay deal was tabled by employers which would have given firefighters a pay rise of 16 per cent achievable over the next year.

But, for the third time in the long-running dispute, the Government had intervened, saying it wanted to study the details of the proposed deal but could not do so before 9am, Mr Gilchrist claimed.

The walkout will last for eight days and is set to be followed by two further eight-day long stoppages starting on December 4 and December 16.

Hopes of a deal had been rising last night after talks between Mr Gilchrist, union president Ruth Winters and assistant general secretary Mike Fordham and three senior officials from the employers side.

They ended at 2.30am and Mr Gilchrist returned to a nearby hotel where his executive had been waiting, saying he was waiting for a phone call from the employers before a decision on whether the strike would go ahead would be made.

At 6.10 am, Mr Gilchrist received the call on his mobile phone from Phil White, one of the local authority negotiators saying that the office of Deputy Prime Minister wanted to see details of the proposed deal.

The union said they would wait until 7.30am.

Mr White called shortly before then to say that Mr Prescott's office could not see the document before 9am.

Following a brief meeting of the executive, it was decided that the strike would go ahead.

'We're here to do a job'

MILITARY personnel covering Herefordshire and Worcestershire during the strike say they are carrying out duties expected of them.

But they do not expect to be able to use the fire brigade's own vehicles.

More than 150 RAF personnel from bases across the UK are covering the two counties for the firefighters.

They are in charge of seven Green Goddesses.

Job

"As far as we're concerned we're here to do a job that involves life-saving and fire rescue," said the officer in charge of the Worcester attachment.

"We're just doing our job as normal.

"The Green Goddesses are there to provide the water to any situation and we've got breathing apparatus rescue teams able to go into buildings.

"We've received no information about using the red fire engines."

Blaze in laundry room

TWO fire engines from Droitwich were called to a motel when its laundry room, at the back of a car park, caught fire.

The blaze, at the Marlgrove Motel started at 5.23pm yesterday but was extinguished by firefighters just after 6pm.

Phil Spencer, leading fire-fighter from Droitwich Fire Station, said an investigation was taking place to discover how the fire started.

House 'saved' by 24 hours

A WOMAN treated for smoke inhalation after a fire in her bedroom might not have been so lucky if it had happened tonight.

Firefighters attended the house in Christine Avenue, Rushwick at 11.45pm yesterday.

Breathing apparatus was used to enable firefighters from Worcester's Blue Watch to control the flames.

Leading firefighter Keith Peters said the house would have been destroyed if the fire had happened 24 hours later. "We've got no gripe with the Army but they haven't got the knowledge we have," he said.