Fire training exercise takes place at Norwich Cathedral

Norwich Cathedral welcomed crews from Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service for an exercise to test firefighting and salvage procedures for the historic city landmark.

On the evening of Thursday 7 November, seven fire appliances, the aerial ladder platform, a water carrier, fire crews and senior officers were dispatched to the Cathedral in a mock situation where a fire had started in the sound room beneath the organ in the centuries-old building.

The exercise tested both the Cathedral and the Fire Service’s rescue plans, and how these plans would work together during an incident both to save the building from fire and to salvage artefacts within it. The training culminated with firefighters using main jets on the Cathedral roof at the base of the spire.

The Revd Canon Aidan Platten, Norwich Cathedral’s Canon Precentor, said: “The fire training exercise was a valuable way to test both Norwich Cathedral and Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service’s plans in the case of an emergency here at the Cathedral. We hope we will never need such a plan but it is vital that we test our procedures as thoroughly as we can.

“We regularly review our procedures for keeping people who come to the Cathedral as safe as possible, and this training exercise was an opportunity to ensure that we are also doing our best to protect and preserve the historic building too.

“We are incredibly grateful to Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service for all they do to help keep Norwich Cathedral and the whole county of Norfolk safe.”

Stefan Rider, Area Manager at Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service, said: “It’s really important that we have plans for protecting Norfolk's heritage and that venues such as Norwich Cathedral have their own plans for emergency situations. But only by testing them together can we be confident that they will work when we really need them to.”

Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service regularly holds training exercises across Norfolk, to test a range of skills used by firefighters across different emergency incidents.

Recent scenarios have included high rise rescue, water rescue and safety in a range of public buildings such as colleges and shopping centres. Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service works with blue light partners, businesses and other local organisations and are always grateful for the opportunity to use real venues.