Firework season prompts urgent warning
In the past four weeks, firefighters have already attended around two firework-related incidents a week on average. This includes:
- Reports of fireworks out of control in a public space in Battersea
- Fireworks being lit from a balcony in Stockwell
- Fireworks being misused in Northolt
- Fireworks being misused in Penge
- Reports of young people setting off fireworks in Notting Hill
- Fireworks being misused and causing heavy smoke logging to a flat in Southwark
- Fireworks being misused in Blackheath
Most notably, firefighters tackled a fire at a secondary school in Enfield last week, believed to have been caused by a group of young people playing with fireworks. Thankfully, no one was hurt, but the incident has served as a stark warning to Londoners of the dangers of their misuse.
To raise awareness, the Brigade has released footage of the incident captured as part of their GoodSam application, hoping it will encourage the public to exercise caution during the upcoming firework season.
The Brigade has also revealed new data today, which ranks Tower Hamlets as London’s busiest borough during fireworks season, with Control Officers taking 685 fire related calls to incidents in the borough since 2010. A staggering 60 per cent of these calls occurred on Bonfire Night alone, with the remaining 25 per cent on Diwali and 14 per cent on Halloween.
The top five boroughs also include Ealing, Newham, Enfield, and Hounslow, with Control Officers receiving between 340 and 418 fire related calls each across the season. Other boroughs, such as Southwark, Hillingdon, Croydon, Brent, Bromley, Barking and Dagenham, Hackney, Westminster, and Redbridge, each saw over 200 calls.
For more information on fireworks, bonfire and candle safety, visit London Fire Brigade’s website. You can also find fireworks displays across the city on the Brigade’s website, which have had risk assessments carried out.
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