The fire service says it is better placed to respond to flooding in South Yorkshire, as the tenth anniversary of floods which devastated the county in 2007 is marked.

South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue (SYFR) formed a major part of the response to floods which hit the region on 25 June 2007 and damaged nearly 1,500 homes in less than 24 hours. Two people also sadly lost their lives.

Emergency services took more than 4,500 calls and the fire service committed all of its available resources to help those in need. Thirty high-volume pumps from across the UK also came to help the relief effort, pumping away thousands of litres of water in badly hit areas, including Bentley and Toll Bar.

Officers say specialist training, regular exercises and new equipment mean it is better placed to an incident on this scale. Nationally, operational guidance for fire services responding to flooding has also been improved.

SYFR now has motorised water rescue boats and fully trained water rescue teams, ready to respond to water related incidents in the county. It also has its own high-volume pump, which is capable of pumping water at a rate of 8,000 litres per minute.

Head of Emergency Response, Area Manager Tony Carlin said: “I’m sure we all remember only too well the devastation caused by the 2007 floods. South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue committed significant resources at the time and our firefighters provided vital support to local communities. Our crews will never forget the community spirit they witnessed in areas that had been devastated by the flood waters.

“We have enhanced our response capabilities to incidents of this nature since then and have also provided support to other parts of the country affected by flooding, including Somerset, Berkshire and Lancashire.

“Flooding remains a significant risk to South Yorkshire, plus other parts of the country, and those living in risk areas should familiarise themselves with information designed to keep them safe in an emergency.”

For more information on a Government backed flood awareness campaign, visit https://floodsdestroy.campaign.gov.uk/

Firefighters are urging the public not to swim in lakes and reservoirs this weekend, with warmer weather set to continue.

South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue says it attends dozens of water related incidents each year. Most are flooding or animal related, but others involve rescuing people from open water- particularly during hot weather.

Safety officers say people should avoid open water- like rivers and lakes- because they may not always be aware of the danger it poses. River flows can be unpredictable and water is often deeper, colder and faster than expected. People should enjoy water safely in swimming pools or safer, specialist facilities instead.

Head of community safety Trevor Bernard, said: “We regularly receive 999 calls in the summer about people getting into difficulty in water, so it’s only a matter of time before someone’s safety is really put at risk unless people listen to our advice.

“It can be tempting to cool off in the summer months, but stick to a swimming pool. Hundreds of people drown each year in the UK and places like rivers, lakes or flooded quarries are completely unsuitable for swimming as they hide a number of hidden dangers.”

Over 400 people die in the water every year in the UK, and firefighters are urging people to follow some basic rules to stay safe.

The dangers of open water are:

• The water can be much deeper than you expect
• Rivers, lakes, canals and reservoirs are much colder than you think
• Open water can carry water borne diseases, like Weils disease
• Cold water dramatically affects your ability to swim
• There may be hidden currents, which can pull you under the water
• You don’t know what lies beneath, like pieces of rubbish or reeds which can trap or injure you

Following on from Dementia Awareness Week last week, the multi-agency Local Intervention and Falls Episodes (LIFE) Team in South Yorkshire have launched a pioneering trial into the use of GPS tracking software to help loved ones locate missing people, particularly those living with dementia.

The LIFE team, which consists of staff from South Yorkshire Police and South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue, have been working on behalf of all three emergency services in Sheffield since August last year, visiting vulnerable people to reduce fire risks, improve security and help people who have fallen.

Their work has expanded over the last year to include offering support to individuals that are living with dementia and their families or carers, and it is hoped that the trial of GPS tracking devices will offer some much needed reassurance.

Emergency services collaboration lead Temporary Chief Inspector Jenny Lax says: “When a loved one goes missing, it is an incredibly worrying and distressing time. Those concerns increase when that person lives with dementia.

“For police, when we receive a report of a missing person who lives with dementia, it generates a massive response immediately from across the force.

“In partnership with South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue, we wanted to see what additional support we could offer to those families and carers of those with dementia and that’s why we secured funding to explore the use of GPS trackers.”

The GPS trackers, which provide emergency services with the ability to trace a person’s movements, can be attached to any item that the individual frequently wears or is likely to always have on them, like a watch or a particular pair of shoes.

TCI Lax continues: “We know that those with dementia often feel they need to walk somewhere or retain some sense of routine and it’s important that the trackers are tailored to individual needs so that if they do go missing it’s more likely they’ll have the tracking device in their possession.

“This means that if they are reported missing, we can trace their movements more effectively and locate them much quicker.

“We hope that this trial offers an additional layer of reassurance to those families whose loved ones live with this awful and often debilitating disease, and provides some form of comfort that if they go missing, our emergency services are in a better position to locate them and return them home safely.”

SYFR Area Manager Steve Helps added: “This is yet another example of how the LIFE team is working together to produce meaningful outcomes for some of the most vulnerable people in society.

“We know that there are huge links between the people who need the help of the police and health services for reasons such as dementia, and those who are at risk of fire. So collaborative working such as this undoubtedly benefits our public safety work as well.”

The LIFE team are currently assessing potential candidates to take part in the trial and individuals that meet a certain set of agreed criteria will be offered a device.