Bonfire Night: Eight attacks on firefighting crews in “shameful” scenes

Eight attacks on firefighters were recorded on Bonfire Night across Scotland as crews dealt with more than 1,000 call-outs on the busiest night of the year.

Firefighters attended approximately 374 bonfires between 3.30pm and 11.30pm on Friday, November 5, and initial figures show that at least eight reported attacks on crews took place throughout the evening.

At least three firefighters were injured as a result of the attacks with one crew member known to have required hospital treatment.

In the north of Scotland, five out of the eight attacks were reported.

A further attack was reported in the east with two more recorded in the west.

As news of the first attacks came through, shortly after 7pm last night (Friday), Scottish Health Secretary Humza Yousaf said the behaviour was “disgraceful and shameful beyond words” and that he hoped those involved are “caught and punished.”

Martin Blunden, Chief Officer of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service condemned the behaviour on Twitter as the picture started to unfold.

He posted just before 7pm that three attacks had taken place so far, with one person left requiring hospital treatment.

Bonfire Night: Eight attacks against firefighters as crews attend almost 400 bonfires

He said: “Please do not attack @fire_scot firefighters who are only doing their job.

"In fact, why attack any emergency service worker when we are here to protect you from harm?”

Libby Logan, the SFRS Area Commander for Operations Control, said attacks on firefighters were “completely unacceptable”.

She added: "This type of behaviour not only prevents our crews from bringing any emergency to a safe and swift conclusion, but it can impact on our emergency service colleagues - including the police when they must escort us at the scene.

"This type of behaviour is, of course, carried out by a very small minority and we once again thank our communities for their continuing support and working together with us to stay safe.”

Assistant Chief Officer Stuart Stevens, Director of Service Delivery for SFRS, said: "I would like to pay tribute to the professionalism and resilience of our frontline and Operations Control firefighters and our support staff who have shown extreme dedication over this period.”

A message from the Editor:Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.