Dozens of firefighters have voiced their concerns over service budget cuts at a Dundee protest.
Workers from across Tayside and Fife gathered in City Square on Monday afternoon to oppose the move that will see appliances removed from 10 stations across Scotland.
Firefighters say the cuts made by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) will affect response times and put crews and communities at risk.
The leader of Dundee City Council John Alexander is now calling on fire chiefs to reverse the decision.
In Dundee, the Kingsway East station will lose its second appliance, leaving it with one.
Meanwhile, the third appliance will be removed from Perth Community fire station, leaving it with two.
Fife is also hit by the cuts, with four fire stations in the region affected from September 4.
It will see Methil and Glenrothes both lose one fire engine, leaving just one at each base.
SFRS says cuts will help plug £11m blackhole
Kirkcaldy will have its height appliance removed, while the third appliance in Dunfermline will also go.
The SFRS says the measures are temporary and will help it plug an £11 million budget gap.
Monday’s event – which kicked off at noon and finished around an hour later – saw protestors make noise with bagpipes, whistles and trumpets.
It follows a demonstration by Fife firefighters in Glenrothes last Thursday.
‘Public and firefighter safety put at risk’
Johnnie Williamson, a firefighter at Kingsway East station and branch secretary for the Fire Brigade Union Scotland (FBU), said: “When there are less firefighters, safety will be at risk – it’s basic math.
“Both public safety and firefighter safety will be put at risk.
“We are keen to raise awareness of the situation and get it into the public domain.”
‘There’s already been three deaths in Perth this year’
John Ford, a firefighter at Perth station, said: “It is very concerning.
“It is going to put a lot more pressure on workers. We’ll need to wait longer for back up to appear.
“There has already been three fire deaths in Perth alone this year.”
He is referring to the fire at New County Hotel in Perth which killed three people in January.
He added: “We already suffer shortages because our third appliance is often on standby at Dunkeld.
“These shortages will only occur more often now.
“They say it is only a temporary measure but more cuts are coming.
“Are we ever going to get these pumps back?”
‘We need local communities to get behind us’
Colin Brown, a Perth firefighter and executive council member at FBU Scotland, says the reduction in appliances could potentially see 200 jobs axed across the country.
Before delivering an impassioned speech at the event, he told The Courier: “This protest is a call for local politicians and councillors to get involved.
“We also need local communities to get behind us, who will be receiving a poorer service than they do right now.”
Mr Alexander, who was also in attendance, said: “I have come down here today to show my solidarity with the workers.
“My worry is (the cuts) will be permanent and not temporary.”
He added that he would be seeking a reversal of the decision and a review of the process that led to it being made.
The SFRS says the decision was made after four years of robust data-gathering.
It says it has selected fire stations where the removal of one appliance would have the least impact.
And it insists there will be no increased risk to the public or firefighters.
Fife Council has also called on fire chiefs to withdraw the plan.
