UK Not Prepared for Consequences of Climate Breakdown, Fire Chiefs Warn

The UK is not prepared for the impact of climate breakdown, fire chiefs have warned as they called on the government to take urgent action to protect communities.

- Robyn Vinter

The National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) said the ability of fire services to tackle weather-related emergencies was at risk, despite them often being the primary frontline responders to major weather events including flooding, fires caused by heatwaves, and storm-related emergencies, all of which were becoming more common.

The organisation represents the bosses of fire and rescue services across the UK. It called for further investment and access to longer-term forecasting to enable them to maintain their "business as usual" service while also "managing the significant resource and staffing pressures that the response to such incidents creates".

The NFCC said fire and rescue workers were increasingly forced to go "above and beyond", responding to flooding and other dangerous weather events. It cited Storm Babet in October 2023, when more than 1,000 homes were flooded and three people died; Storm Darragh in December 2024, which killed two people; and last month's Storm Eowyn, which broke wind-speed records and caused significant damage.