An ambitious trio of Greater Manchester firefighters are hoping to make a difference as they depart on a 3,000km road trip across Eastern Europe.
Rhodri Jones, James Copley and Arif Ahmed left Manchester on Sunday to donate a fire engine to the small Macedonian town of Bogdanci – 10 miles from the Greek border.
The firefighters left in their Volvo FS6 engine under Operation Florian, a British fire and rescue charity that aims to deliver emergency equipment to the world’s poorest regions.
“Firefighters in Macedonia are using engines that are almost 50 years old,” said 31-year-old Rhodri.
“While they’re still in working order it means that rescue personnel are restricted, not only in how quickly they can respond to an emergency, but also in how fast they can bring a fire under control.
“It’s going to be a pretty arduous journey, but by donating this British fire engine, we aim to improve safety levels within the community as a whole.”
The journey will see the team first drive to Hull to depart on a ferry across the English Channel to the Belgian port of Zeebrugge.
From there the team will travel through Belgium, Germany and Austria before moving onto the Balkans and their final destination of Macedonia by tomorrow.
After travelling 1,812 miles to deliver the vehicle – donated by East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service – the firefighters will spend a week providing comprehensive training to their Macedonian counterparts.
This donation builds upon the charity’s links with Macedonia, which has trained more than 200 firefighters and delivered 300 breathing apparatus sets to the region since 2007.
For more information visit www.operationflorian.com
Picture courtesy of G-Man via Wiki Commons, with thanks.
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