MORE incidents of flooding across south Essex and fire crews providing more assistance at coastal and inland water rescues has led to the service buying a new fire rescue boat.

Firefighters in Leigh, have taken to their boat as if they’d been born to do it.

Last month, the station in Mountdale Gardens became the first in the county to house a boat complete with paddle rafts, rescue poles and throw lines.

All members of the station’s four watches have undergone training and crews are now regularly honing their skills by putting the four-metre-long Avon 4.0 boat through its paces off Two Tree Island in Leigh.

Station Officer Simon Dedman, Leigh station commander, said: “The guys have all been hugely enthusiastic about the project.

“When you train for something, you want to be able to put it into practice. The ongoing training sessions we run allow the guys to use their skills and practice for real-life rescue situations.”

The 30-horsepower inflatable is intended for use in flooding, coastal and inland water rescues anywhere in Essex, and should eventually be joined by two more based elsewhere.

The fire service has spent around £30,000 on three boats, with extra cash being spent on training.

Mr Dedman said: “There are plans to get another two boats which will be stationed at Clacton and Waltham Abbey, which will give us three teams capable of dealing with any kind of water emergency.

“It’s about sending in appropriately trained people, with appropriate equipment, to safely deal with an emergency which we could have dealt with before, but not necessarily in the safest of manners.”

Crews are prepared to deal with everything from saving human lives to rescuing animals and helping out at riverside fires.

Gary Finan, leading firefighter on White Watch, said: “The idea was to have a dedicated team which can respond to a range of incidents from flood work to river rescues. Essex is becoming more and more prone to flooding, so it’s been brought in at the right time.”

Before the boat’s launch, crews travelled to north Wales to undergo rigorous water rescue training.

Mr Finan said: “The course gives you a greater understanding of how to work with currents and tides, and deal with all kinds of situations where people could be trapped or injured in the water.”

Firefighters were also taught water-specific first aid techniques.

All crew members are equipped with their own bag of emergency kitm including dry suits, helmets, buoyancy devices and a knife, and long lines for pulling people to safety, torches, and binoculars.

With the new rescue boat, firefighters work in tandem with the coastguard, assessing each incident on an individual basis to decide who should deal with it.

All firefighters have water rescue training, but, like police and ambulance personnel, are not supposed to enter water deeper than knee-level.

This means the skills of the Leigh firefighters really could prove to be lifesavers.