I have worked in a fire brigade control room for two decades – and things have changed drastically for the worst in the past two years. Now, every time I take a call my heart stops.
My main job is to take emergency calls and use our computer system to get fire engines out to an incident as quickly as possible. But two years ago a new computer system was brought in. We were promised it would be more efficient and help us find people’s locations more quickly. In reality, we now often resort to writing vital information down on scraps of paper because the system is inconsistent, temperamental, and crashes a lot.
Our training to use the new system was haphazard and many of my colleagues – most of whom had proudly served in the fire brigade for some 30 years – have left because of the stress of using it. There was pressure to get the system online and despite our unions and staff flagging the issues, the brigade still gave the green light to go live.
When I take a call, the clock starts ticking in my head – that fire might be getting larger and I haven’t been able to send any help. What if someone is trapped in their house and I can’t find the address? What if the computer crashes again while I’m taking a call?
When the system crashes we write addresses and all further communications on sheets of paper, looking them up in map books and then calling stations on the telephone to send fire engines out. We use a wall board to keep track of everyone’s movements. It is chaotic and wastes time.
The biggest cause of stress is the address-searching capability of the new system. The address database is not designed for our use but imported into the system. The address records are inconsistent or non-existent. They have also been out of date since the day we went live.
The tension is always there: the stress is immense. I have sent engines to incidents when there are other crews nearer the fire but the computer hasn’t picked that up. I have been unable to find an address and had to send assistance to another property nearby to satisfy the computer system; then I have to let the fire crew know that the fire isn’t exactly where I am sending them.
I’ve been taking a call and my computer has crashed; a colleague has had to start the call again for me. Every day we are sending extra sets of fire engines to emergencies that are already being taken care of, because the computer doesn’t recognise that a fire crew has already been dispatched. We have to recall one, two maybe even four fire engines. This has always happened to a small degree, but now it is prolific.
I am sure the ambulance crews, police and other agencies we work with regularly must think that I am inadequate at my job when I interact with them. I feel deflated. I used to feel so proud of myself; that has been taken away. Callers don’t know the difficulties I am having and I would not want them to. I want them to feel secure and safe.
I want them to believe in me and that I am going to help them. They are in a crisis when they call and it’s important that they have no idea of any difficulties that I may have. Deep down, though, I want the public to know how ineffective this system is and what harm it is causing.
Stress eats away at you. Its damage is often invisible for many years. No one who is good at their job should feel so useless and ineffective. We will all carry on making it work through perseverance and a desire to serve those that need us, because that is what we do – but there is a toll.
This series aims to give a voice to the staff behind the public services that are hit by mounting cuts and rising demand, and so often denigrated by the press, politicians and public. If you would like to write an article for the series, contact kirstie.brewer@theguardian.com
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