Union bosses have warned that a reduction in the number of firefighters has left Norfolk vulnerable to the types of devastating blazes which swept the county last week.

The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) raised concerns after new figures showed there has been a 6pc drop in the number of local firefighters since 2010 - from 861 in 2010 to 807 in 2021.

It said the cuts were "letting down" the community and leaving the region at risk in future fires.

Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service said the requirements for the service were kept under constant review.

At the height of last week's heatwave, the service had to deal with almost 300 blazes in the space of 24 hours. In total 20 homes were destroyed across the county, as wild fires spread out of control.

Norfolk's was one of 16 fire and rescue services to declare a major incident, meaning there were not enough resources to meet demand.

The service was so stretched that three fire engines from the Norfolk Fire Museum had to be brought back into service, while teams from Avon, Tyne and Wear and Merseyside drove to the county to help out.

The union warns that such types of fire could become more common in Norfolk, as a result of climate change.

Ryan Hastings, Norfolk FBU branch secretary, said: "Some crews were probably working for 20 plus hours and we were having to wait some considerable time to get some resources to the scene.

"These sort of wildfires are going to be more and more frequent."

Matt Wrack, FBU general secretary, added: "The brutal truth is that government ministers and chief fire officers have ignored the warning signs which have been obvious for all to see.

"There is a growing anger at the way firefighters have been treated for more than a decade and at the way our service is being dismantled in front of our eyes.”

A spokesman for Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service said the past fortnight has shown how vital the work of firefighters is.

He added that the needs of the service were constantly kept under review.

"We owe it to them to make sure our service is well equipped to deal with the challenges they will face: this isn’t a simple matter of one off investment or a single magic bullet, but an ongoing process which involves consultation with our staff and the various unions, as well as other stakeholders," he added.

He said more information would come to Norfolk's cabinet meeting in the autumn, including a draft community risk management plan.

The plan follows "considerable investment" over recent year in prevention and protection, to reduce the number of fires, as well as in equipment such as the technical response vehicles.

While there has been a fall in staff numbers over the decade, the spokesman said the total number of staff - including support staff - has increased over the past five years.

Norfolk had 887 total staff in 2015 and 916 in 2020.

This is down from a 2010 high of 1,008.

A Home Office spokeswoman said: “The government is committed to ensuring fire services have the resources they need to keep us safe, including from wildfires, and overall fire and rescue authorities will receive around £2.5 billion in 2022/23."

She added a wildfire framework was published by the government in December to ensure close coordination between agencies to provide an effective response to incidents.


How do Norfolk's staffing levels compare?

Fire services across the UK have seen staff numbers reduced over the last decade.

All other forces that declared a major incident last week have seen greater cuts than Norfolk.

Suffolk has seen a 22pc reduction in the number of firefighters - from 782 to 607 between 2010 and 2021.

While Cambridgeshire went from 695 to 562 - a 19pc reduction.

Of the 16 areas to declare a major incident, Buckinghamshire has seen the biggest percentage cut - from 625 to 402 firefighters, a 36pc drop.