Around 15,000 People Enjoy Record-Breaking 999 Day

A RECORD-BREAKING number of visitors flocked to Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service’s (GMFRS) 2015 Emergency Services Day at intu Trafford Centre yesterday.

Despite the unseasonal weather, around 15,000 people attended the fifth annual event of its kind, which ran from 10am until 4pm on Thursday, August 6.

The day featured a range of displays and demonstrations by the emergency services and various other supporting agencies from Greater Manchester and beyond.

The Orient car park was flooded with all kinds of vehicles – from vintage police cars to the most modern firefighting appliances – various stalls, equipment displays and children’s games.

Mayor of Trafford, Councillor John Holden, officially opened the event as GMFRS’ Assistant County Fire Officer Paul Argyle, GMP’s Chief Constable Sir Peter Fahy and Vice-Chairman of Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority, Councillor Tommy Judge wished visitors an enjoyable day.

Richard Paxton, General Manager for intu Trafford Centre, said: “This event gets better and better each and every year. It truly was a fantastic display of the emergency resources available within the North West and shows what a fantastic job they all do on a daily basis.

“The day was well attended and provided great fun for the whole family with something for everyone, from fingerprinting at the CSI tent to live demonstrations from Manchester f[ire, visitors had lots to see and do.”

Cllr Judge said: “Despite the rain trying to spoil our fun, thousands of people enjoyed another really successful event which showcased the fantastic and diverse work carried out by all our emergency services and partners.

“Families visited countless displays of emergency vehicles, vintage appliances, demonstrations and displays and met staff, mascots and young ambassadors from all the agencies involved.

“We’d like to thank everyone who helped to organise the event and of course all those who attended and helped make it a huge success.”

Members of all the emergency services were on hand to provide safety advice, answer questions and share life-saving skills such as CPR.

There were live demonstrations throughout the day, including a road traffic collision rescue, chip pan fire, domestic sprinklers, rope rescue and a demonstration from the GMFRS Community Fire Cadets.

Jim Liggett, Superintendent at GMP’s Trafford Division, said: “The day has gone from strength to strength each year and seeing the real interest that the general public have in what the emergency services do is fantastic.

“Events like these allow us to engage with our communities and we have seen huge support from local residents and visitors who recognise the work that we and our emergency service colleagues do in our local communities.”

North West Ambulance Service Director of Operations, Derek Cartwright, said: “This year’s 999 day was a massive success with our crews teaching thousands of children CPR skills and even more now aware that they can call our NHS 111 service for medical help when it’s not an emergency.

“The event highlights the fantastic work of emergency services across the county and how we work together to benefit the Greater Manchester population.”