Isle of Man: Replacement off-road fire vehicles issued

The new fleet of vehicles has cost £1.17m

Seven replacement off-road fire vehicles have arrived on the Isle of Man.

Costing £1.17m, the four-wheel vehicles will allow firefighters to respond to incidents in difficult or boggy terrain.

They can also carry 800 litres of water whereas previous vehicles carried between 150 and 200 litres.

Chief Fire Officer Mark Christian said the vehicles "will enhance our firefighting capability".

Purpose built by a company in Scotland, the appliances have been designed specifically "around the operational needs of the service", Mr Christian added.

Six standard vehicles will be located across the island at five stations in Douglas, Laxey, Ramsey, Kirk Michael and Rushen.

The seventh, a rescue vehicle designed to support remote, cliff or water rescues, will be based at Douglas Fire Station.

The improvements will allow the Isle of Man Fire & Rescue Service to respond to a "wider range" of calls compared to the previous off-road vehicles, including car fires, flooding or snowfall incidents, a spokeswoman said.

'Difficult conditions'

Mr Christian said 70 drivers have been trained to use these vehicles safely in an emergency and in off-road conditions.

Over 1,300 hours of training have been logged by staff, he added.

Member for the department of home affairs John Wannenburgh MHK said "the advances in technology... will greatly assist our fire and rescue service who often have to work in dangerous and difficult conditions".

The vehicles, which can also store more firefighting equipment, will replace the current outdated fleet, some of which are almost 29 years old.