Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service (RBFRS) aims to contribute to securing a safe society by reducing the incidence of death, injury and damage to property from fire and other emergencies.
Incidents of Public Interest
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The following fire and rescue incidents attended by Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue have been identified as having an ongoing and high public interest.
- 2011 Swinley Forest Fire
- 2004 Ufton Nervet Rail Crash
- 1992 Windsor Castle Fire
The Stop message for the forest fire at Swinley Forest, Crowthorne, was issued at 17:43 on Sunday 8th May. This was the largest incident, in terms of resources and length of operations, ever dealt with by Royal Berkshire Fire and Rescue Service.
A stop message is sent when an incident is being scaled down, i.e. no additional resources are required and existing
resources on scene have been reduced. The fire is now largely extinguished apart from some remaining underground hotspots, and
has been handed back to the forest owners / managers.
Swinley Forest is a mixed (coniferous and broadleaf) forest, the majority of which is owned and managed by the Forestry Commission with other areas owned by Crown Estates. The area affected by the fire covered 300 hectares, of which 55% was damaged by fire and forestry clearing operations.
Resources used during the incident:
- 12 fire and rescue services (Royal Berkshire, London, Surrey, Hampshire, Wiltshire, Buckinghamshire, Norfolk, Oxfordshire, West Midlands, Gloucestershire, Hertfordshire, Northamptonshire and wildfire experts from Northumberland)
- 18 Jets
- 21 hose reels
- 2 High Volume Pumps (HVPs) 6.5 kilometre water relays (i.e. 13 kilometres) from open water supplying three water supply lines
- 1 water relay of three pumps from 21 inch towns main, four hydrants, four fire and rescue service Water Bowsers and three Forestry Commission Water Bowsers
- 4 portable dams
- 8 Light Portable Pumps
- 10 HVPs
- 10 various off road pumps
- 1 Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) Module
- 1 military fuel tanker
- Forestry Commission resources:
- 1 large mulcher
- 1 tractor mounted mulcher
- 3 360-degree slew excavators
- 2 tractor mounted excavators
- 4 forestry teams involved in felling operations
Deputy Chief Fire Officer Olaf Baars has said: “This has been an exceptionally difficult and challenging operation. I would like to pay tribute to the contribution of our fellow fire and rescue services, who have been unstinting with their support. I would also like to thank the volunteers of the Women’s Royal Voluntary Service (WRVS) and the British Red Cross who staffed the catering unit when Hampshire’s catering unit was not on site and produced literally thousands of sandwiches and hot drinks, on a round the clock basis, which helped to maintain morale.
“Thames Valley Police, Bracknell Forest Borough Council, the Forestry Commission and Crown Estates have shown outstanding support and have helped us in managing the impact of this incident. I would also like to thank members of the public in the area for their patience and understanding. Most of them took notice of our requests to stay away from the area and many local people provided sweets, cakes and biscuits for the crews, which was much appreciated.
“This is one of the largest incidents that the fire and rescue service has dealt with since World War II and I am proud of the way in which we have all responded.”
At 18:12 p.m. on 6th November 2004, First Great Western’s 17:35 p.m. service travelling from London Paddington to Plymouth hit a stationary car at an automatic level crossing, with a driver inside.
The accident occurred on the narrow lane linking the village of Ufton Nervet to the Bath Road (A4), about 300 metres from
their junction. The level crossing is between the Theale and Aldermaston stations, situated within the county of Berkshire,
England. The train was not scheduled to stop at either station. An inquest held subsequently concluded that the accident
was caused by the driver of the car, who committed suicide by parking on the level crossing.
The train involved was a Class 43 (HST High Speed Train), 43019. The rear of this 220m-long train came to rest approximately 100m beyond the crossing. All eight of its coaches derailed. Six people were killed in the crash, including the car’s driver, the driver of the train, and four of its passengers. Another passenger subsequently died in hospital. There were a total of seven fatalities. Approximately 200 people were aboard at the time of the incident, with around half of these injured, with 12 serious injuries. Eleven people had to be cut free from the wreckage.
The accident investigation and necessary repairs blocked the main railway route between London and the West Country until the morning of 16th November. During the period of line closure inter-city trains operated via Swindon and Westbury, and local services were replaced by rail and bus shuttles.
In 1992 Windsor Castle situated to the west of London at Windsor suffered severe damage in a fire, which destroyed some of the most historic parts of the building. Windsor Castle is known as the largest inhabited castle in the world and is one of the official residences of the British monarch, Queen Elizabeth II.
Visit the following links to find out more about this major incident:
Quick Links
Use these links to find documents.
- 2011 Swinley Forest Fire
- 2004 Ufton Nervet Rail Crash
- 1992 Windsor Castle Fire
- Press Releases
Other links:
