Mother's warning over 'fatal' fire strikes

Troops will be on standby to act if there is a strike

A woman whose father and two children died in a blaze during the last firefighters' strike says she fears more people will die if they take action again.

Elaine Johnson's two daughters, Paula, two, and 15-month-old Michelle died in the fire at her home in Everton.

Her father Ron was hailed as a hero for trying to save the girls in the tragedy, in November 1977.

Ms Johnson, who was 19 at the time, says she believes all three would still be alive if there had not been industrial action.

'Dinosaurs'

"It's like history repeating itself again," Ms Johnson told the Liverpool Echo.

The Green Goddesses came out, but there are hopeless

Elaine Johnson

"What happened to us still affects me and my family every day and I know more people will die if this strike goes ahead.

"The Green Goddesses came out, but there are hopeless. They are dinosaurs."

Ms Johnson went on to have three more children and says that she is still upset, but not bitter.

Decent wage

She added: "I believe that firefighters deserve a decent wage, but so do nurses and doctors and they are not walking off wards risking lives.

"The government should not have let it get to this anyway.

"They should have learned from last time."

At the time, Chief Fire Officer Sid Rankin said that if firefighters had been working, breathing apparatus would have been at the scene of the Everton fire more quickly.

But he added that it would have been "supposition" to say the tragedy might have been averted.