Forgotten brigade pioneer's legacy lives on

A STATUE of "the father of firefighting" has been completed and is set to be unveiled in Parliament Square.

James Braidwood created the world's first municipal fire station on the Royal Mile, but has until now received scant recognition in his home city.

But a 7ft statue has now been completed following a two-year campaign by 92-year-old former Edinburgh firemaster Frank Rushbrook.

He raised 75,000 - much of it from his own pocket - to create the work and is confident city planners will allow it to be installed in Parliament Square in April.

Mr Rushbrook, who was firemaster of the Edinburgh Fire Brigade for nine years from 1961, said: "I've been working on this for two years so it is a great thrill to see the finished article."

Braidwood founded the world's first municipal fire brigade in 1824 after a series of disastrous fires in the Capital, before becoming the first superintendent of London's fire brigade when it was founded in 1833. He died in a fire near London Bridge Station in 1861.

His methods are still used to teach firefighters to this day.

Mr Rushbrook said: "He is such an important figure not just for Edinburgh but beyond. Edinburgh had the first municipal fire brigade in the world because of him.

He was a true hero killed in duty and his story will be of tremendous interest not just for the Edinburgh public but for visitors to the city as well."

Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service donated 5000 towards the statue and a further 10,000 came from the Surplus Fire Fund, set up from charitable donations by wealthy city businessmen after the Great Fire of Edinburgh in 1824. The remainder came from Mr Rushbrook and other private donors.

Brian Allaway, current chief fire officer in Lothian and Borders, said: "We are very pleased to be moving forward with this planning proposal and the unveiling of the statue is an exciting step."

The statue was created by renowned Scottish sculptor Kenny Mackay, whose most famous work is of Donald Dewar in Glasgow's Buchanan Street.

A MAN WITH FIRE IN HIS BELLY

BORN in Edinburgh in 1800, James Braidwood was educated at the Royal High School, before entering his father's business as a builder and later qualifying as a quantity surveyor.

After two disastrous fires ruined 50 houses and seriously damaged the Tron Kirk in the Royal Mile in 1824, he worked with the city council to establish the world's first municipal fire service. In 1830 he wrote a book on the "science" of firefighting.

He was then hired by London Fire Brigade - and killed by a falling wall while fighting the great fire of Tooley Street.