Firefighters break strike to attend incident

Rubbish was piled against a door and set alight

Striking firefighters in Cornwall left their picket line on Tuesday to go to a fire which left a mother and three young children needing hospital treatment.

The fire broke out just before midnight in a communal area of a group of flats in Pengegon Parc in Camborne.

A Green Goddess was called to the incident after reports that a fire had started on a communal balcony.

But the military vehicle and personnel were stood down minutes later when firefighters decided to break their strike when they believed lives were at risk.

Firefighters broke the picket line

A woman and her three children were treated at the scene for breathing smoke before being taken to the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro. They were later discharged.

The police said it appeared the fire started in bags of rubbish piled against a door. The incident is being treated as arson.

The telephone call to emergency services came from the family of five who lived in the flat on the landing were the fire started.

They were trapped by the flames from the fire burning against the door of the property opposite their home.

Assistant Divisional Officer Geoff Hick of Cornwall Fire Brigade said: "The fire was serious and could have been a lot more serious had it not been tackled as quickly as it was.

"Fortunately, both the fire brigade and military crews were on the scene very, very quickly."

The Fire Brigades Union has said striking firefighters in Cornwall have an understanding with the chief officer that they will turn out if life is at risk.