Firefighters from March, Chatteris and Wisbech together with supermarket Sainsbury's recognised in annual county fire service awards
Excellence and exemplary service were celebrated at the annual Cambridgeshire Fire and Rescue Service (CFRS) Excellence Awards.
The annual event, which took place at the Huntingdon Marriott Hotel, celebrated the achievements of staff from across different areas of the service.
The commitment, dedication and professionalism of staff who regularly go above and beyond to provide the best possible service to the people of Cambridgeshire were all celebrated by around 140 guests.
Hosting the event was Chief Fire Officer Chris Strickland together with Assistant Chief Fire Officer Rick Hylton and Head of Media and Communication Hayley Douglas, who presented the following awards:
Long Service and Good Conduct medals for completing 20 years of long and meritorious service to the fire and rescue service and the public. Among the recipients was Alex Chrysanthou, a Chatteris firefighter and Andy Titmuss, crew commander at Wisbech.
Long Service Award Support Staff – presented by the chief fire officer to support staff for 20 years of service.
Chairman's Awards - an award made to retired staff that have completed at least 25 years' service with CFRS. John Chelton, watch commander from Wisbech was among those to receive this award.
Excellence Awards - these awards reflect a variety of different achievements that were nominated by staff in the Service and chosen by a judging panel. March on-call crew were among the recipients.
A March crew of four who worked exceptionally hard to save the life of a casualty who went into cardiac arrest during a rescue from a property.
March Sainsbury's was awarded the On-call employer of the year award for its support in releasing staff along with providing a training venue and 'casualties' for an exercise.
Mr Strickland said: “Our awards allow us to celebrate all the hard work and dedication shown by staff and to thank them and their families for providing great support.
“It gives me great pride to be able to recognise the achievements of so many members of staff from across the different areas of the service. The passion, enthusiasm and professionalism shown by our winners, as well as the years of commitment shown by those receiving long service awards, is really inspiring. It shows me how devoted our staff are to providing a great service to the people of Cambridgeshire.
“Being able to celebrate our staff achievements in this way would not be possible without the continued support of our sponsors. I must say a big thank you to all the organisations that have contributed to the evening.”
Councillor Kevin Reynolds added: “It’s always a privilege to celebrate the careers of our retired members of staff and to present them with a small token of our thanks. Being a retired firefighter myself, I am well aware of the great sacrifices these individuals and their families have made throughout their careers, so I am proud to recognise the great contribution they have made to their communities.
“It never fails to impress me how dedicated our staff are across all areas of the Service, and the high standards I see every day are indeed something that fills me with pride.”
