Fire brigades reach blazes within 10 minutes in just 40% of cases

Fire brigades arrive on the scene of a fire within 10 minutes of the alarm being raised in only 40% of cases, new figures show.

A report by a local authority watchdog shows that it takes over 20 minutes for fire officers to reach the location of a reported fire in 13% of incidents. Almost half of all fires are reached by emergency crews 10 to 20 minutes after they are notified of the fire.

The study by the National Oversight and Audit Commission — a body set up to provide independent scrutiny of the performance of local authorities — found the proportion of fires reached within 10 minutes had increased in 18 council areas last year.