9:20am Saturday 31st October 2009
By Emma Cruces
CHILDREN as young as nine threw broken paving stones at a fire crew in an ‘appalling’ attack.
The group of youths, aged up to 15, hurled the blocks of concrete at a fire engine arriving at the scene of a bonfire in Oxford Close, Audley, Blackburn.
Around eight youths stood around the fire launched the attack before running off. No-one was injured.
A spokesman for the fire service said: “Clearly we are appalled at that sort of behaviour.
“Firefighters are all about saving lives.
“These youngsters don’t even appear to realise that the same appliance and crew could be called away to rescue one of their own loved ones from a car crash or house fire.
“For them to not work that out is behaviour that we utterly condemn, as would many others.”
Crew manager Caroline Sturgess, who was onboard the engine during the attack, slammed the ‘dangerous’ actions of the youths who attacked her crew.
She said: “The blocks were directed at the windscreen and could have injured myself or the driver.
“We want to do a good job and make sure people are safe. We don’t expect to come under attack from those in the local community.”
The fire engine’s CCTV system capture the incident, and police are scouring the footage in a bid to catch those responsible.
Audley ward councillor Salim Lorgat also said the behaviour of the youngster was ‘absolutely shocking’.
He said: “There is a culture developing among some young people of targeting firefighters in a way that would not happen with police officers because they would get arrested.
“But these people have to understand that firefighters are carrying out a duty and making us all safer.
“This behaviour is mindless and completely unacceptable to any right-minded people.”
Damage to the fire engine was restricted to a few scratches and it is still in operational use following the attack on Thursday night.
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