Arundel fire station operational again

The town's firefighters have already shown their resolve to overcome the shock of seeing their station go up in flames, by answering their first emergency calls since last Wednesday's inferno.

Within a few hours of the blaze breaking out, a replacement fire engine for the one destroyed, was parked at the Ford Road base, a reassuring sight for Arundel residents that their historic town continued to have emergency cover.

At the same time, full sets of uniform, boots and helmets were delivered for firefighters, to replace kit damaged by the fierce flames and dense smoke.

During the weekend, a temporary garage building was quickly put up to house the fire engine, and two portable cabins were installed, one as an office and the other fitted with showers and toilets.

It's still not clear whether the fire station will have to be rebuilt or can be repaired, but Arundel's fire commander Mark Dunham was in no doubts about the recovery of his nine-strong team's spirits.

"The mood and morale is very high. Everyone has been working very hard to get the station up and running again, from a situation where we had nothing."

Chris Bishop, Arun district fire commander, said people living near the fire station, many of whom were evacuated during the blaze, had been very supportive of the firefighters and very understanding of the work that would need to be carried out to repair or replace the building.

"The crew here suffered just like any other occupier affected by a fire. They lost a lot of their history."

He added: "The most important thing has been to ensure that the fire cover was never interrupted here. We do have plans for emergencies such as this '“ after all, that's exactly what we do as a service."