The Fire Services Act 1947 created two brigades for Derbyshire - the County Borough of Derby Fire Brigade and the Derbyshire Fire Service. In 1974, local government reorganisation led to the creation of a single organisation for the county - Derbyshire Fire Service. The word 'rescue' was added to the title in the early 1990s to reflect the changing responsibilities of the service.
Stations
There are 31 fire stations currently in operation with the service, consisting of:
Buxton, Wholetime/On-Call
Chesterfield, Wholetime
Staveley, Wholetime/On-Call
Alfreton, Wholetime/On-Call
Ilkeston, Wholetime/On-Call
Kingsway, Wholetime
Nottingham Road, Wholetime
Ascot Drive, Wholetime
Long Eaton, Wholetime/On-Call
Glossop, Weekday Plus/On-Call
Matlock, Weekday Plus/On-Call
Swadlincote, Day Crewed/On-Call
New Mills, On-Call
Whaley Bridge, On-Call
Chapel En Le Frith, On-Call
Bradwell, On-Call
Hathersage, On-Call
Dronfield, On-Call
Clowne, On-Call
Bakewell, On-Call
Bolsover, On-Call
Shirebrook, On-Call
Clay Cross, On-Call
Ashbourne, On-Call
Wirksworth, On-Call
Crich, On-Call
Ripley, On-Call
Belper, On-Call
Heanor, On-Call
Duffield, On-Call
Melbourne, On-Call
Appliances
There are a total of 58 front-line fire engines used by the Service, located at all of the stations. The specialist appliance fleet consists of :
There are also a larger number of Officer Vehicles and Utility Vehicles that Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service own.
Notable Incidents
Derbyshire Fire and Rescue service were heavily involved in the coordination and response to the near-dam collapse incident at Toddbrook Reservoir, Whaley Bridge in Derbyshire. The service operated its strategic response out of a holding area based at Buxton fire station and its operational response from a forward command post at a sports field at the side of the reservoir. On 1 August 2019, a major incident was declared and 1,500 residents were evacuated from parts of Whaley Bridge, Furness Vale and New Mills after concrete slabs on the 1969 overflow spillway were partially dislodged by high volumes of water following several days of heavy rain. The Environment Agency issued a 'danger to life' warning due to the possibility of the dam collapsing. High-volume pumps were deployed to take water from the reservoir to prevent it from overflowing and reduce pressure on the dam. An RAF Chinook helicopter dropped 400 tonnes of aggregate into the damaged area and specialist contractors added concrete grouting between the bags of ballast to bind them together to support the spillway.
