Mersey Firefighters trial BMW 'Fire Bikes'
£30,000 machines aim to respond quickly to small fire call-outs
SMALL FIRES in Liverpool could now be extinguished more quickly thanks to two new 'fire bikes' being trialled by Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service.
Based on BMW's R1200RT, the £30,000 machines each carry two 25-litre canisters filled with water and foam and a high-powered 30m jet hose.
See the bike in action via this BBC clip.
A spokesman for Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service said: "About 60 per cent of what we do is putting out "rubbish fires". These are fires that don't pose a threat to people or buildings. If approved this trial would enable us to buy more bikes and have them in stations where they have the highest incidences of these kind of fires. It is an expensive bike but then a fire appliance costs £250,000. It also means roads aren't blocked with 17 tonne fire engines which will be carrying life-saving equipment that could be used elsewhere."
Visordown gave you the heads up on the system over two years ago, when Merseyside Fire and Rescue told us they were testing them in a six-month trial.
Makes you wonder why they doing it all over again?
