The fire services in the United Kingdom use motorcycles (fire bikes) in various roles. A number of fire and rescue services around the UK use fire motorcycles to deliver road safety messages. From 2005, Merseyside fire service deployed a motorcycle in an automatic alarm response role, and from 2007 they have used two quad-bikes for public information campaigns. In 2010, Merseyside became the first fire service in the UK to use fire motorcycles as an actual fire appliance, to be used to fight small fires. Having been deployed in a six-month trial, if found successful they could be deployed to other services nationally.
The Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service have been using motorcycles since 2005. A 1300cc Honda Pan-European motorcycle is used in busy times during the day to quickly attend automated fire alarm incidents in Liverpool, ahead of main appliances, to assess situations at the premises. The motorcycle is equipped with blue lights, emergency warning equipment, a first aid kit and an extinguisher, as well as an LED matrix sign. The motorcycle was introduced due to rising congestion, and because "virtually all" of calls, comprising 800 in city centre commercial areas, 6,000 overall, were false alarms. [1]
In 2007, the Merseyside service also introduced two Honda quad-bikes to assist in reducing and preventing anti-social behaviour fires in areas that are used for public recreation, by promoting public awareness and engaging with young people. The service was also to investigate if they could be used operationally to fight woodland or grass fires. [2]
On 23 July 2010, it was announced the first hose-equipped fire motorcycles were to be used in the United Kingdom. [3] [4] [5] The Merseyside service announced it was to start a six-month trial of two specially equipped motorcycles, which are fitted with two 25-litre (5.5-imperial-gallon; 6.6-US-gallon) canisters filled with water and foam, and a high powered 30-metre (100-foot) long jet hose. Other fire services have attended a demonstration of the motorcycles in Merseyside. [5]
The motorcycles will be sent to fires instead of fire appliances when fires are not deemed a threat to people or buildings, thereby freeing up main appliances for use elsewhere. The equipment on one motorcycle can fight a fire for two to three minutes, but can extinguish a car fire in around 20 seconds. [5] The motorcycles will be sent to incidents of anti-social rubbish fires in skips or wheelie bins, which account for 60% of the force's fire call outs. [3] [4]
The riders use a bespoke designed suit which is both fire-protective and suitable for motorcycle riding, although the rider still has to switch between two helmets; a motorcycle helmet and a firefighter's helmet. The motorcycles cost about £30,000 to buy and equip. The 1,200 cubic centimetres (73 cu in ) machines are made by BMW Motorrad. [5]
A number of UK fire services operate fire motorcycles to promote safe motorcycle riding. Painted in the highly visible fire service markings and colour schemes, and ridden by police-trained firefighters, they are used in road safety events such as the BikeSafe initiative, or taken to motorcycle events and popular biker gathering places, to engage with bike riders, on the theory that firefighters, rather than the police, are seen as more approachable by bike riders, and have specific knowledge of motorbike safety, having attended many motorcycle accidents. [6] [7] [8] [9]
In this education role, the West Sussex service operates two Triumph machines, [6] while the North Wales service uses a Yamaha FJR1300. [7] In the Kent service, they use a high-profile superbike as their fire motorcycle: a Honda CBR1000RR Fireblade, which has been sent to such events as the British Superbike Championship at Brands Hatch. [8] [10] Kent Fire Bike Team's aims are, whilst working both independently and in conjunction with partnership agencies including Kent Police, Highways Agency, KMT Road Safety org and SE Ambulance, to raise awareness of advanced training opportunities for bikers, to raise awareness of other road users about the vulnerability of bikers, to highlight the importance of correct attitude and equipment for bikers, and to represent biking and motorcyclists to the non-biking public.
The Northumberland Fire and Rescue Service use a BMW R1150 as their fire motorcycle. It was originally introduced as just a road safety motorcycle, but with the later addition of an automated external defibrillator (AED) and trauma care kit, it can now also be used as a response vehicle for road traffic accidents. [9] [11] [12]
A motorcycle is a two or three-wheeled motor vehicle steered by a handlebar from a saddle-style seat.
A fire engine is a road vehicle that functions as a firefighting apparatus. The primary purposes of a fire engine include transporting firefighters and water to an incident as well as carrying equipment for firefighting operations. Some fire engines have specialized functions, such as wildfire suppression and aircraft rescue and firefighting, and may also carry equipment for technical rescue.
An all-terrain vehicle (ATV), also known as a light utility vehicle (LUV), a quad bike or quad, as defined by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), is a vehicle that travels on low-pressure tires, has a seat that is straddled by the operator, and has handlebars. As the name implies, it is designed to handle a wider variety of terrain than most other vehicles. It is street-legal in some countries, but not in most states, territories and provinces of Australia, the United States, and Canada.
The Honda ST series, also known as the Pan-European in Europe, is a duo of Sport Touring motorcycles comprising the ST1100 and the later ST1300.
The Hong Kong Fire Services Department is an emergency service responsible for firefighting and rescue on land and sea. It also provides an emergency ambulance service for the sick and the injured and gives fire protection advice to the public. It is under the Secretary for Security who heads the Security Bureau.
The six main types of motorcycles are generally recognized as standard, cruiser, touring, sports, off-road, and dual-purpose. Sport touring is sometimes recognized as a seventh category or integrated with the touring category.
The London Fire Brigade (LFB) is the fire and rescue service for London, the capital of the United Kingdom. It was formed by the Metropolitan Fire Brigade Act 1865, under the leadership of superintendent Eyre Massey Shaw. It has 5,992 staff, including 5,096 operational firefighters and officers based at 102 fire stations.
Motorcycling is the act of riding a motorcycle. For some people, motorcycling may be the only affordable form of individual motorized transportation, and small-displacement motorcycles are the most common motor vehicle in the most populous countries, including India, China and Indonesia.
The New Zealand Fire Service was New Zealand's main firefighting body from 1 April 1976 until 1 July 2017 – at which point it was dissolved and incorporated into the new Fire and Emergency New Zealand.
A motorcycle taxi, or cart bike or bike taxi, is a licensed form of transport in some countries. The taxi typically carries one passenger, who "rides pillion" behind the motorcycle operator. Multiple passengers are common in some countries.
The BMW R1200RT is a touring or sport touring motorcycle that was manufactured from 2005 to 2019 by BMW Motorrad to replace the R1150RT model. It features a 1,170 cc (71 cu in) flat-twin engine with a six-speed gearbox and shaft drive.
Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service (DSFRS) is the statutory fire and rescue service covering the county of Devon and the unitary authorities of Plymouth, Torbay) and Somerset in South West England – an area of 3,924 square miles (10,160 km2). It serves a population of 1.75 million, and is the fifth largest fire and rescue service in the United Kingdom.
Essex County Fire and Rescue Service (ECFRS) is the statutory fire and rescue service for the county of Essex in the east of England, and is one of the largest fire services in the country, covering an area of 1,338 square miles (3,470 km2) and a population of over 1.7 million people.
The history of the motorcycle begins in the second half of the 19th century. Motorcycles are descended from the "safety bicycle," a bicycle with front and rear wheels of the same size and a pedal crank mechanism to drive the rear wheel. Despite some early landmarks in its development, the motorcycle lacks a rigid pedigree that can be traced back to a single idea or machine. Instead, the idea seems to have occurred to numerous engineers and inventors around Europe at around the same time.
Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service is the statutory fire and rescue service covering Cornwall, England. As of April 2019, the service employs over 400 retained firefighters, 203 full-time firefighters, plus 170 support and administrative staff. Created under the Fire Services Act 1947 as "Cornwall Fire Brigade", the name changed to "Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service" on 1 October 2009.
Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service (NFRS) is the statutory fire and rescue service for the county of Norfolk in the east of England. The county consists of around 870,100 people, covering the 4th largest area in England with 2,074 square miles including 200 miles of inland waterways, 90 miles of coastline and 6,125 miles of roads. The county city is Norwich with other major towns including Great Yarmouth, King's Lynn and Thetford. Norfolk has one of the 20 Urban Search and Rescue teams across England and Wales which were set up in response to the 9/11 attacks. The teams, including Norfolk, have the capacity to deal with two simultaneous incidents across the UK.
Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) is the statutory fire and rescue service covering the county of Suffolk in East Anglia, England. It was formed in 1948 as the Suffolk & Ipswich Fire Service, before changing after the 1974 Local Government Review to 'Suffolk Fire Service'. Following the 2004 Fire & Rescue Services Act, the service name was changed to Suffolk Fire & Rescue Service to better reflect its role. Suffolk has a population of 760,556 and covers 1,466 square miles (3,800 km2). The county town is Ipswich with other major towns including Lowestoft, Bury St-Edmunds, Felixstowe and Newmarket.
Fire services in the United Kingdom use a variety of fire appliances, which perform a wide range of general and specialised roles and fit into several distinct categories. Contemporary fire appliances carry a multitude of equipment and firefighting media to deal with different types of emergencies ranging from fires, rescues, vehicle extrication, floods, salvage, casualty and trauma care.
A motorcycle ambulance is a type of emergency response vehicle which carries either a solo paramedic, emergency medical technician, or first responder to a patient; or may also be used with a trailer or sidecar for transporting patients. Because of its small size and agile performance, a motorcycle ambulance is able to respond to a medical emergency much faster than a car or conventional ambulance vehicle in heavy traffic, which can increase survival rates for critically ill patients, especially those in cardiac arrest.
A fire motorcycle is a specialist motorcycle modified for use by a fire brigade or fire department. Several countries around the world use fire vehicles based on a motorcycle, often for rapid intervention to beat traffic congestion. The equipment carried ranges from simple extinguishers to jet guns with hose rigs. Firefighters may also use fire motorcycles to offer medical first aid treatment. In the United Kingdom, fire motorcycles are used by some fire services for road safety awareness campaigns.
Media related to Fire motorcycles in the United Kingdom at Wikimedia Commons