'One lift rescue a day' for fire crews in West Midlands and Staffordshire

Fire crews have rescued people from lifts almost 3,500 times over the past decade in the West Midlands and Staffordshire - an average almost once a day - figures show.

Fire engines at the scene of a fire at Walthamstow Mall on Selbourne Road, Walthamstow, east London. London Fire Brigade (LFB) have declared a major incident as more than 100 firefighters tackle a blaze at the east London shopping centre. PRESS ASSOCIATION Photo. Picture date: Monday July 22, 2019. See PA story FIRE Walthamstow. Photo credit should read: Kirsty O'Connor/PA Wire.

Home Office statistics showed West Midlands Fire Service had attended 2,580 of the incidents between January 2011 and December last year.

And a total of 178 lift rescues were carried out last year in the region despite the impact of Covid-19, but still fewer than the 265 recorded in 2019.

In Staffordshire, the fire service recorded 821 lift release call outs over the decade – with 50 last year despite the virus, but still fewer than the 89 in 2019.

It has led to calls from fire and union chiefs for building owners to take responsibility for lift maintenance and to stop the incidents from happening.

A spokesman for the National Fire Chiefs Council said: "It may also be reflective of the longer-term work of fire and rescue services in actively requesting building owners ensure lifts are maintained to reduce the instances of lift call outs."

Nationally, more than 120,000 lift rescues were carried out over the decade and crews across England were called more than 8,500 times last year to free those trapped.

A spokeswoman for the Fire Brigades Union said residents and workers should not have to put up with sub-par facilities and urged building owners to keep lifts in good repair.

She added: “The fire service is a vital public service and no matter what the incident or cause, firefighters will always be there to respond.

"Although people stuck in a lift may not be at immediate risk, it is through no fault of their own and they should not be left stranded for long periods of time."

A spokesman for West Midlands Fire Service said: "

"Lift incidents can involve people stranded in a lift car or trapped in the lift mechanism. Our Fire Control will quickly assess the nature of an incident to decide whether or not we need to attend, and whether we will charge for doing so.

"Where possible, people trapped in lift cars will be advised to alert the owner or occupier of a building or their lift engineers. However, we will respond if we believe that there is a risk to life or a medical emergency.

"Our crews familiarise themselves with building layouts, different types of lifts and how they work, in case they do have to attend. When someone is trapped in lift machinery, we can call on our specialist Technical Rescue Unit and firefighters trained in rope rescue.

"We work closely with councils, housing teams and the owners of buildings with lifts to ensure they keep them maintained and that they respond themselves whenever appropriate."