Ellon fire -fighters in line for London charity award
ELLON Fire Station is set to compete in a highly sought after fire-fighting award.
The station has recently been nominated for the ‘Firestation of the Year’ at the Spirit of Fire Awards by the Firefighters Charity, who provide advice and support to firefighters and their families. The nomination is made on the basis of both firefighting ability, and on the basis of work with the community, which the charity promotes. Nominees are drawn from across the whole of the United kingdom.
The Firefighters Charity itself has benefited from thousands of pounds worth of fundraising done by Ellon’s firemen, who have traditionally participated in events to raise money both for local good causes, and the Firefighters Charity. The station has also been involved in 161 call-outs this year, despite staff being part-time, and holding down day jobs on top of their fire-fighting duties.
Spokesman for the station Norman Bruce told the Ellon Times that the station was thrilled to have been nominated for the award.
“The nomination recognises both our charity work, and our hard work in fighting fires,” he said. “We’re being measured in our response to the emergencies we attend, as well as for our community work.”
The awards take place at the East Wintergarden at Canary Wharf in London, where the winners will be announced. Last year’s award went to Hook Norton Fire Station. This year, Ellon will go head to head with East Linton Fire Station (Lothian and Borders), Runcorn White Watch (Cheshire) and Bletchley Fire Station (Buckinghamshire)
Norman told the Times that the station would be sending representatives.
“Two of the station personnel will be travelling to London for the ceremony, and we’re really hoping we win. I’d say we have as good a chance as any of the other stations taking part, so we’re very hopeful that we’ll be successful. I’m imagining there will be a trophy of some description, and if we win it’ll look very nice in the canteen. Nobody will be allowed to drink tea out if it, though!”
He added that as part of its fundraising efforts, the station were always on the lookout for sponsorship from local businesses interested in raising money for good causes.
“We undertake a lot of charity work,” he said. “Charity car washes, door to door collections, stalls and open days - there are costs involved, and any help we received from local businesses would be enormously appreciated.”
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Weather for Ellon
Monday 21 May 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: 6 C to 13 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: East
Tomorrow
Sunny spells
Temperature: 8 C to 15 C
Wind Speed: 13 mph
Wind direction: East
