Fire service spent £3.5m on kit for 'fast response'

Six new type B fire engines would be in operation by the summer

A fire service that spent £3.5m on new kit and vehicles, to help reach residents quicker, will unveil the equipment at an event.

Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service previously announced it would invest into its fleet to "help deliver the fastest response to our county's communities in an emergency".

The money was used to buy new fire engines, electric cars, thermal imaging cameras and more, with all vehicles expected to be in operation by summer.

The items will be showcased at Ipswich East fire station later.

According to the service, the new fire engines will be strategically placed across the county at locations such as Ipswich, Bury St Edmunds, Lowestoft, Elswell and Halesworth.

They have been built on a Volvo chassis to complement the existing fleet.

Electric officer response and pool cars would also be introduced to support the county's emergency climate plan, developed by the county council.

There would be 15 Volkswagen officer cars and six Nissan pool cars in operation.

Specialist equipment was also being introduced to improve services. This included a turntable ladder to replace an aging vehicle at Bury St Edmunds -one of two specialist high reach vehicles in the county.

The turntable ladder had a lighter chassis and 32m (105ft) extending ladder, according to the fire service.

Every fire engine would also be equipped with thermal imaging cameras that would have the ability to search for people, and monitor how a fire spreads, in smoke and in darkness.

Every fire engine would also carry specialist gas monitoring equipment which would allow crews to test the atmosphere to ensure it was safe.

This equipment could also be used at a range of other emergencies including gas leaks.