Gareth Scahill (Fine Gael)
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I welcome the Minster of State. I call on the Minister to urgently commission a national review of the fire brigade service areas boundaries to ensure the response times and provision of services align with the most recent census figures and, more importantly, with the real need of our people on the ground. I ask for an independent national review of this as well. This is not just a call for policy. It is a call for protection and preparedness on behalf of the lives that depend on a timely emergency response.

Recent events in Roscommon and Longford have laid bare the pressure our fire services are under, particularly in rural areas and areas with growing populations of older people. On 9 April of this year, it was reported in our local paper that 55 firefighters from five separate fire stations - Ballaghaderreen, Ballyhaunis, Boyle, Charlestown and Elphin - were needed to tackle a gorse fire in Loughglinn stretching over 800 acres. Three weeks later, three fire brigades were called to a similar incident between Trien and Willliamstown. Following the five fire brigades' dealing with the initial fire, they had to attend again the following day to ensure there were no residual fires or risks to local plantations, but the threat was still live.

These are not isolated incidents; they are warnings. My colleague sitting behind me, Senator Brady, just dealt with a very big bog fire in County Longford over the weekend, which also required the services of approximately four fire brigades and lasted for more than two days. There are serious questions of what happens when multiple fire brigades are pulled to fires like this and who covers the towns and communities left behind? Are we satisfied we have accounted for the growing vulnerability of our population, especially in towns with higher populations of older residents who may need help more quickly or who may not be able to evacuate as quickly? Are we satisfied our fire services are distributed fairly and efficiently?

Let me be clear about this, our fire services are doing extraordinary work. We are very proud of our fire services in the west and in my county of Roscommon. I am very proud of the work they do and the hours they put into it but they do so under significant strain, especially at times like this. For example, Castlerea in County Roscommon, my hometown, has a population of 3,000 to 3,500 people and the fire station has been closed since 2017. Last Wednesday evening, after I tabled this Commencement matter, there was a house fire in a built up residential area in Tarmon Manor at 7.30 p.m. A retired fire officer from Sligo spoke on the radio the following morning and said that if the station had existed in Castlerea, the response time would have been seven to nine minutes. Without the station, the nearest fire units are located approximately 16 miles away, meaning a response time of 20 to 30 minutes. In an emergency, that is not just the difference between a scorched field or a lost home; it is the difference between life and death.

We need a strategic review that considers the updated population data; the latest census information, including age demographics, which I believe will show that certain areas have a higher percentage of older people; a response time analysis across all regions; and the impact of increased climate related events such as the more frequent and intense gorse and bog fires we see at the moment. We must future-proof our fire service provision and ensure no community is left exposed. I urge the Minister to act now, not after the next emergency and definitely not after the next loss of life. Conduct a review that will give our fire services the support and resources they need, or add to those supports, but conduct a review that will, above all, give our communities the safety they deserve and, for communities like my hometown, the cover they deserve.

John Cummins (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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I thank Senator Scahill for raising this important matter. He also spoke to me about the issue in Castlerea, separate to this Commencement matter. It is a very important issue and I thank him for raising it.

The provision of a fire service in its functional area, including the establishment and maintenance of a fire brigade, the assessment of fire cover needs and a provision of fire station premises, is a statutory function of individual fire authorities under the Fire Services Act 1981.

Keeping Communities Safe was adopted as Government policy in 2013 and is based on the internationally used systemic risk management approach combining fire safety, fire protection in the built environment and fire service response measures. Keeping Communities Safe provides for the delivery of consistent and effective fire services in Ireland while continuing to reduce the risk from fires in communities and prioritising the safety of fire personnel in their work. The policy sets out the overall approach, the methods and the techniques to achieve the objective of keeping communities safe from fire, and it sets out national norms, standards and targets against which local authorities can benchmark their fire services.

Over the course of 2014 and 2015, an external validation group commissioned by the management board of the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management visited every fire service in the country as part of a new external validation process arising from the implementation of Keeping Communities Safe. In April 2016, the management board published the first external validation group report, entitled Local Delivery - National Consistency. The findings of the first external validation group process are available on the Department’s website. In 2020, a desktop review, entitled the Capacity Review, was undertaken by the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management. Following its completion, a report titled Response, Resilience & Recovery was completed in October 2020. The findings of this review indicated a strong capacity in terms of fire safety and operation efficacy across the fire services.

Keeping Communities Safe provides for each fire service to undertake an area risk categorisation process in respect of each of its fire station areas. The outcome of this process enables fire service management to establish a risk grading across very high risk, high risk, medium risk, low risk or very low risk categories for each fire station area. In recognition of population movements and changes in the built environment over time leading to variation in the categories of response times which are applicable, Keeping Communities Safe also sets out a requirement to monitor risk categories.

The area risk categorisation is a critical tool for ensuring fire service resources are used effectively and efficiently, and that the safety of the public is prioritised in all communities. By assessing and classifying areas based on defined risk factors, fire services can demonstrate an evidence-based approach to service delivery. Fire authorities determine the priority needs in their areas and apply resources in the most effective configuration, ensuring an appropriate and effective balance between fire prevention, fire protection and response measures. Appropriate mitigation measures and, in particular, community fire safety measures such as the smoke alarm scheme, which provides free smoke alarms to vulnerable households, including optical alarms for the deaf and hard of hearing, are funded by my Department and are being utilised to increase the safety of public dwellings.

It is intended that, later this year, there will be a second process in terms of that area risk and external validation group, which I can talk more about in the follow-up.

Gareth Scahill (Fine Gael)
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To reiterate, the fire service we and all Senators in this House have is a service we are very proud of. That does not mean, however, we should not look for more and better. I can only speak of my own home area, but in rural areas like Castlerea, where residents have limited mobility and live in isolated locations, delayed emergency services can have life-threatening consequences.Based on the figures in the NOAC local authority performance indicators in recent years, the national average cost per capitaof the fire service is between €61.50 and €63.50. The cost per capitafor the fire service in my local authority area in Roscommon is €36.86 to €38.50. I believe there is an imbalance in certain areas and a review would highlight that.

John Cummins (Waterford, Fine Gael)
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I again thank Senator Scahill. I too want to put on record my thanks to all the fire service personnel in the country who, when we often go in the opposite direction, run into danger in order to try to protect lives.

I confirm that a second external validation group review - No. 2 - has been commissioned by the management board of the National Directorate for Fire and Emergency Management. That process is scheduled to begin in quarter 3 of this year, with the external validation group conducting in-person evaluation visits within each fire authority. That will be a positive as it will look at everything Senator Scahill has asked for, in terms of demographic movements and how we respond to events as they occur in a safe manner, while also ensuring we put in place the supports on the prevention side as well. I thank him for raising this important Commencement matter.