Introduction

September 7, 1940 marked the first night of the Blitz in London. During the Blitz, most of the bombing happened at night and firefighters spent long hours putting out the fires, often working until the early morning.

The public’s opinion of the fire service changed significantly at the beginning of the Blitz. During the ‘phoney war’, firefighters had been thought of as ‘army dodgers’. But, in 1940 this attitude changed and firefighters became known as ‘the heroes with grimy faces’.

Recruitment

The Auxiliary Fire Service (AFS) was established to form a voluntary service to assist the existing fire services in case of air raids in the event of war.

Recruitment in London began in March 1938 with queues of people eager to join the fire service. Training was 60 hours per week and included drilling and practising with equipment. On 1 September 1939 about 89,000 men and 6,000 women were mobilised countrywide for full-time service in the AFS and war was declared two days later on 3 September 1939.

Uniforms 

Many AFS firefighters were originally issued with only one uniform. With 57 consecutive nights of air raids during the Blitz, uniforms had to be dried out in preparation for the following evening.  Some firefighters used the warm bonnets of the fire engines to put their uniforms on in their haste to dry them out. The shortage of uniforms meant that many firefighters worked in postmen’s outfits, as the Post Office had a surplus in store. Firefighters were also issued with a steel helmet, rubber boots, trousers and waterproof leggings.

Equipment

In order to support the fire service during the war additional appliances were introduced. The most common was the trailer pump, which the Brigade hired over 2,000 taxis to tow. Trailer pumps could be used to relay water, often from the river or an emergency water supply, to areas where it was needed.

During many of the worst air raids firefighters had to control fires with limited amounts of water. This was because London was often bombed when the Thames was at low tide making it difficult to supply firefighters with enough water to tackle the blazes.

The bombings caused 70 breaks in 6,000 miles of water pipes every day, so it was necessary for vehicles to transport water. Steel frames were fitted to lorries, allowing them to carry up to 1,000 gallons of water to where it was needed.

Fire stations

In London there were about 300 substations during the war, which were mainly schools, garages and small factories adapted for use by the fire service. When war was declared and the AFS was mobilised many members were required to report to and stay at their assigned station.

Not all substations were prepared for recruits however and conditions were poor. Despite this, once the Blitz began, many members of the AFS slept at the fire station even when they were off duty to ensure they were available to help if necessary.

The spirit of comradeship among firefighters and their dedication to their job were commendable and according to Churchill, the fire service ‘were a grand lot and their work must never be forgotten’.

Women in the fire service