Edinburgh fire station closure plan leaves residents feeling 'very vulnerable'

Fire chiefs propose to close Marionville fire station in the east of the city as part of a shake-up following a Scotland-wide review. Like several other fire stations Marionville contains potentially dangerous RAAC concrete, but others with RAAC are being repaired or rebuilt.

Two public meetings are being held tomorrow, Tuesday September 2, at Craigentinny Community Centre, to hear people's views on the plans. A public consultation closes on September 16.

Marionville fire station is proposed for closure as part of a shake-up following a Scotland-wide review | Google

Under the proposals, the fire engine from Marionville would be moved to Newcraighall, 3.5 miles away.

But locals argue major new housing developments and student accommodation planned for the area mean the fire station should stay.

And they claim the greater distance fire engines will have to travel means they are at more risk.

Alice MacAuley, of Cragentinny and Meadowbank community council, said: "It makes us feel very vulnerable.

"There are lots of new developments planned in the area, including student accommodation. When you think of the number of flats that are potentially coming to Meadowbank stadium, to Jock's Lodge, to Abbeyhill, and the massive Seafield development, we're talking about thousands and thousands of new homes. We definitely want to keep our fire station."

And she said recent experience had reinforced concerns. "We've had four fires locally very recently and knowing that's happening close to us is really frightening.

“If the fire engine from here moves to Newcraighall, that's a significant length of time where somebody could lose their life. I'm very concerned.”

Agnieszka Barys, from campaign group Living Rent Lochend, added: “The announcement that the fire station will be closed hits deeply, a sense of fear and injustice. We've had a few domestic fires around here recently, plus that huge Arthur Seat fire that made headlines worldwide, and even so we are talking about closing the nearest fire station.

“Closing Marionville doesn't make sense, as new housing developments continue to grow in the northeastern part of the city. Every day, brave firefighters risk their lives to keep us safe, closing Marionville will put our lives at risk and make their job harder.”

Edinburgh East Labour MP Chris Murray is opposed to the closure and agrees the huge increase in housing in the area must be taken into account.

He said Edinburgh was a growing city, and as well as the new homes and student accommodation, it was seeing larger and larger events, where a "really fast" response to any incident would be essential.

"Everything I can see is pointing to a growing requirement for fire stations over the next 10-15 years, not less."

And he voiced concern about traffic congestion delaying fire engines. "The city is changing in how we move around. I regularly do the journey from Newcraighall to Abeyhill and it's really bad. If you're relying on pre-existing patterns of fire trucks getting through the city, they're not going to be able to do it in a couple of years in the way they are now."

The Scottish Fire ad Rescue Service (SFRS) has acknowledged closing Marionville will result in slower response times, which in a "worst case scenario" could mean an extra 4-6 minutes.

But Deputy Assistant Chief Officer Andy Girrity said Edinburgh was well covered by fire stations and the SFRS was “comfortable that we would still provide an acceptable response”.

He said: “Most urbanised environments are congested now. The modelling we have conducted, supported by professional consultants, is telling us we can still respond in a suitable response time should Marionville no longer be there. That response would come predominantly from Newcraighall and McDonald Road, supported by Liberton. Crewe Toll and Tollcross.”

And he said there were fewer housefires nowadays than they used to be. “That’s because of the prevention agenda - fires safety visits, the public are better educated about what to do if they have a fire, building standards are much more robust on the way houses are built and reducing their flammability, and most houses have smoke detection.”

The public meetings are on Tuesday, September 2, at 2-4pm and 6-8pm at Craigentinny Community Centre, Loaning Road, Edinburgh EH7 6JE. The SFRS says people must register in advance. People can give their views on the plans online on the council’s consultation hub.