UNION chiefs have expressed their safety fears for some of Hampshire’s towns and cities under the proposals for the future of the fire service.

          ▪ 215 jobs to be cut at fire service

As reported in the Daily Echo, chiefs at Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service have unveiled their plans in order to save £12.2 million in government cuts.

More than 200 fire fighting posts will go but new technology will be introduced in order to fight fires across the county.

Some stations, including Winchester and Gosport, could see no full-time fire fighters overnight as part of these plans. A second option sees them having two.

But the secretary for Hampshire Fire Brigades Union, Gary Jackson, said Winchester was one of the union’s “greatest concerns” with the amount of heritage sites, boarding schools, a prison and a hospital in the city.

He feared a fire could become dramatically worse when two fire fighters call for more support in a major incident.

He said: “It doesn’t sit right with me, in my experience, and my professional judgement that a city the size of Winchester is left no fire cover at night.”

Deputy chief officer of Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service, Neil Odin said: “This not about numbers of fire fighters, it’s less about that, the technology allows these changes to happen. With the right we can make an excellent start and save lives.”

All of the plans will be debated at the next meeting of the Hampshire Fire Authority on Wednesday September 9.