REGIONAL: Outrage after firefighters forced to clear fly-tipped junk on emergency call

THOUGHTLESS litterbugs put lives at risk after dumping piles of rubbish on an emergency access route '“ waste that firefighters were forced to clean on their way to a major crash.
By The Newsroom
Published 2nd Jun 2018, 11:40 BST
Updated 19th Jun 2018, 14:26 BST
Firefighters struggled to remove the rubbish scattered on the road as they were travelling to an emergency call PHOTO: West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service e6yTfi-aTyPAvA_5x_ClFirefighters struggled to remove the rubbish scattered on the road as they were travelling to an emergency call PHOTO: West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service e6yTfi-aTyPAvA_5x_Cl
Firefighters struggled to remove the rubbish scattered on the road as they were travelling to an emergency call PHOTO: West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service e6yTfi-aTyPAvA_5x_Cl

West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service has hit out at the incident, branding it ‘unacceptable’.

Fire crews made the discovery while heading to a five-vehicle crash in Southwick tunnel, near Shoreham, West Sussex.

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The fire service lashed out at the yobs on Facebook, where a spokesman said: ‘When firefighters from Shoreham Community Fire Station attempted to use the emergency access route on the A27 slip road, they were met with a large amount of fly tipping.

‘Crews had to physically remove the abandoned waste in order to gain access, causing a delayed attendance time.

‘This is unacceptable and Highways England have been informed.

‘Please report large scale illegal dumping to help us avoid a similar situation: gov.uk/report-flytipping.’

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Fly-tipping is illegal and can result in a heft fine or prison sentence in the most severe cases.

There were 1,602 prosecutions for fly-tipping in England in 2016-17, down from 2,135 the year before.

In total, 98 per cent of prosecutions resulted in a conviction.

Councils also handed out 56,000 fixed penalty notices with a maximum fine of £400 in 2016-17.

Fareham Borough Council recorded on of the largest rises in fly-tipping from 2015-16 to 2016-17, with reported incidents surging by 327 per cent.