Hampshire and Isle of Wight to host national Festival of Rescue

By FIRE Magazine On Sep 23, 2024

Hampshire and Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service will be hosting the UK’s biggest and most prestigious rescue competition on September 27 and 28.

The United Kingdom Rescue Organisation (UKRO) “Festival of Rescue” will see expert teams of firefighters from 28 UK fire services and three international teams come to Portsmouth and Eastleigh to test their skills across a variety of challenging scenarios. Teams will compete to be the best at vehicle extrication, rope rescue from height, water rescue, and trauma care. There will also be a fire cadets’ challenge and dog demonstration.

Members of the public visiting Gunwharf Quays and Portsmouth Historic Dockyard or walking along the River Itchen* (near Eastleigh Rugby Club) will be able to watch all the action, learning more about the skills and equipment used and cheering on the teams taking part.

HIWFRS Chief Fire Officer, Neil Odin, said, “Hosting the UKRO Festival of Rescue is a huge honour and we look forward to welcoming our colleagues. Rescue and ‘special service’ calls are now making up a bigger proportion of the total incidents we respond to and UKRO offers a great way for professionals to learn and practice their skills and techniques for these types of incidents, helping us to improve the way that we respond to our communities.

“It is also a great opportunity for the public to see firefighters in action in a safe environment and find out more about what the role involves and to chat with us about staying safe.”

Dan Quin, Vice-Chair of the United Kingdom Rescue Organisation said: “I am absolutely delighted to be here in Portsmouth to host this year’s Festival of Rescue with the brilliant Hampshire & Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service.

“The United Kingdom Rescue Organisation is at the forefront of advancing professional rescue – supporting and enabling professional rescuers to be the best they can be to protect people. These events aren’t just a brilliant opportunity to compete and catch up with peers that we otherwise may not be able to, but they are also a valuable learning and development opportunity – showcasing the best skills and techniques from across the country. I’m very much looking forward to the challenges and am extremely grateful to our hosts, volunteers and sponsors for their continued support.”

Thank you to Gunwharf Quays, Portsmouth Historic Quarter and the Environment Agency and The Hub for providing some fantastic sites for the challenges, including the Spinnaker Tower and Boathouse 4, and to all the sponsors supporting this event in particular our Challenge Sponsors Angloco, ATACC and Silverlake.

*Please note*

The Water Rescue event on the River Itchen is on Friday 27 only. View the timetable here Festival-of-Rescue-2024-Programme_final.pdf (ukro.org)
The extrication event at Gunwharf Quays will involve releasing people who are acting as casualties from cars. This can be noisy and it could be unsettling for people who have experienced a road traffic incident or lost a loved one as a result of one.

Further information can be found at www.hantsfire.gov.uk/ukro2024