Royal Albion Hotel fire on Brighton seafront: Fire Brigades Union says surrounding areas were left without adequate cover

The first fire was reported at around 5.30pm on July 15 as crews were drafted in from London, Surrey, Kent, West and East Sussex.

A union spokesperson said: “In 1998 a similar large-scale fire at the Albion hotel building was attended by 24 fire engines. Nine fewer fire engines attended the scene in 2023. The response last weekend meant that East Sussex and surrounding areas were left without adequate fire cover as the fire service scrambled to deal with the blaze.

“East Sussex Fire and Rescue Service [ESFRS] has lost nearly 140 frontline firefighters and control room staff to cuts since 2010. As a result, firefighters were forced to work under extreme and unsafe conditions at the scene.”

Reported conditions include 13-hour shifts and no facilities for decontamination to protect against the risk of cancer, according to the union.

The union’s executive council representative for the South East Joe Weir said: “Firefighters worked under exhausting, appalling and unsafe conditions on the night of the initial fire, doing everything they could despite being stretched to near breaking point.

“Had there been another incident of a similar size, there would not have been enough firefighters available to put it out and the fire service would have been unable to cope. We simply do not have enough resources. That is the terrifying truth.

“Our service had to request fire engines from neighbouring regions, who were unable to provide the number needed because of cuts to their services. This is no way to run a service that saves lives and homes. We need urgent investment now.”

ESFRS, which said more than 50 appliances attended the blaze, explained that firefighters respond ‘highly effectively’ to the fire.

Director of service delivery ACFO Mark Matthews said all other calls in East Sussex were mobilised to without delay in the normal way and besides a minor injury caused by carrying equipment away from the scene, there were no injuries to firefighters.

An ESFRS spokesperson added: “The safety of our crews is paramount. As with all incidents, there will be opportunities to forensically explore how we can improve things.”

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