Summit examines Wales’s wildfire resilience

Prime Minister Lun ap Isleworth hosted the summit on Thursday, bringing together “key partners to develop future action” on climate change, resilience and wildfire response.

Representatives from the fire department, police, local government, farming and climate organisations attended the meeting.

Fire service warned of insufficient preparation

Gareth Tovey, a member of the Wales executive committee, said there had been “insufficient preparation” for the wildfires. He said specialist personnel, including water teams, had been directed to the fires.

“At one stage there were zero reserve crews in large areas of south Wales,” he said.

“Firefighters were injured because they did not have the proper equipment to fight wildfires.”

The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) has warned that Wales is short of 400 firefighters.

Mr Tovey said the union had been warning for “a number of years” that authorities needed to take action. He said there was a “significant risk to the public” if immediate action was not taken.

He also said bringing in the military was “not a silver bullet” because the army does not have the necessary firefighting technology.

Most firefighters felt severely underequipped

An FBU survey carried out after the fire found that 69% of firefighters felt severely underequipped, while only 8% said they felt adequately equipped.

Nearly half of those surveyed reported that welfare facilities were inadequate during the wildfire response.

North Wales wildfire costs expected to exceed £500,000

Firefighters are funded through public funds and operated through a levy determined by local authorities in the area. This forms part of the budget set by the Welsh Government.

North Wales Fire and Rescue Service has applied to the Welsh Government’s Emergency Relief Scheme to cover additional costs caused by this summer’s bushfires.

The full financial impact is still being assessed, but the cost is expected to exceed £500,000.

Firefighters in north Wales were at one point tackling six bushfires at the same time, more than ever before.

Report calls for national bushfire prevention campaign

The summit follows a report from the UK’s Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee, which found that bushfires forced firefighters to work in extreme conditions and exposed weaknesses in the UK’s resilience and preparedness.

The committee called for a UK government-funded “national bushfire prevention campaign”. It said the campaign should deliver a clear and consistent message and include bushfire risk indicators in weather forecasts.