Fire service 'woefully prepared' to fight blaze

Firefighters’ union leaders tonight accused Hertfordshire fire service of being “woefully prepared” to tackle the Buncefield oil depot blaze.

The Fire Brigades Union criticised fire service bosses as firefighters announced that they had defeated the blaze – thought to be the largest peacetime fire in Europe – after a 60-hour fight.

Hertfordshire’s Chief Fire Officer Roy Wilsher dismissed the union’s criticism and said the efforts of his firefighters had been “magnificent“.