Fire Service

Kilkenny Fire and Rescue Service has three functions:

• providing emergency cover for all types of incidents (fires, road traffic accidents, flooding, oil spills, hazardous chemical incidents, etc.) in County Kilkenny.
• ensuring the fire safety of public premises by providing advice and enforcing the appropriate legislation for both new and existing premises.
• advising and educating to the public on fire safety matter.

 

Incident Response

Incident	Total
No. of fires attended	324
Road Traffic Accidents	85
Flooding	19
Rescue/Removal of persons from water	1
Other non-fire rescues	5
Hazardous Substances in transit	1
Miscellaneous	160
False alarms, malicious	16
False alarms, good intent	110
Total	721

 

The average time to turn out the fire brigades was 6 minutes 39 seconds for fires and 6 minutes 52 seconds for other types of incidents.

Capital Projects

A new fire engine was purchased for Thomastown Fire Brigade at a cost of almost €320,000, funded by the Department of Environment, Heritage and Local Government.

 

Fire Safety Certificates

81 applications for fire safety certificates were received in 2011. This is up from 70 in 2010. These applications were dealt with in-house by the fire prevention staff.

 

Fire Services Act

Fire Prevention staff made a considerable number of visits to premises both to provide advice and to enforce legislation. Closure notices were served on three premises during the year. The programme to target the fire safety in large retail premises was continued, with a number of premises being visited. This programme should be completed in 2012.

 

Community Fire Safety

The 2011 Primary Schools Programme was provided by Fire Services personnel. The objective of this is to raise awareness of fire safety amongst primary school children and their families. Kilkenny Fire Station and other fire stations continued to facilitate school visits.

 

Voluntary Fundraising

Fire-fighters and ambulance personnel partook in the now annual Christmas Charity Collection with the funds going to two local charities. The fire-fighters also raised funds at the May Bank Holiday weekend with the Mount Everest Ladder Climb.

Fire Fighters raising funds at the May Bank Holiday Mount Everest Ladder Climb
 

Major Emergency Management

The County Council's Major Emergency Plan was reviewed during 2011.

Kilkenny County Council was notified by the National Competent Authority of two further sites in Kilkenny which come under the Seveso ll legislation and for which external emergency plans must be formulated. Work on these in co-operation with An Garda Siochana and the HSE was commenced. The external emergency plan for the Grasslands Fertiliser site near Kilkenny City was reviewed at the end of 2011.

A Major Emergency table top exercise was held during the year to test the external emergency plan for the Grasslands Fertiliser site. This involved staff from Kilkenny County Council, the HSE, An Garda Siochana and Grasslands Fertilisers.
 

Civil Defence, Fire Service First Responder Course 2011

 

Civil Defence

Kilkenny Civil Defence is a volunteer based organisation whose members serve as a high quality back-up service supporting the principal emergency services and the local community. It currently has 63 members.

During 2011 its volunteers provided first aid to 15 events and assisted in the Kilkenny Senior Hurling Team homecoming.

Kilkenny Civil Defence operates multi-skill training out of its two training centres both located within the city of Kilkenny. The areas of training are;

• Casualty/First Aid Service
• Rescue
• Auxiliary Fire Service
• Warden Service and Radiation Monitoring
• Welfare Service
• Civil Defence Communications

 

Awards Night 2011 where members of Kilkenny Civil Defence received certification

of achievements in a number of disciplines including CFR, OFA, EFR,

Powerboating, Communications, Rope Rescue and Food Safety.