Kent Fire and Rescue Service (KFRS) has used its innovative new piece of firefighting equipment to help extinguish blazes at two large industrial sites for the first time.  

Crews attended the fire in Margate at the beginning of February. The robot was deployed alongside eight fire engines, the bulk water carrier and a height vehicle to help battle the flames at the garage, which contained an electric vehicle, multiple tyres and gas cylinders.

Working jointly with the drone which identified key hotspots within the building, the new piece of technology was used to enter the collapsed structure and assist with damping down, which helped crews gain an understanding of what they were dealing with and minimise the number of firefighters in the hazardous area.

Last week, the firefighting robot was called up again to Tonbridge where it joined forces with a specialist digger, drone and five fire engines to extinguish the flames. This helped crews avoid the heavy smoke that had engulfed the building as the fire was being put out. 

The robot, which is one of the first in the UK, also provided a water monitor, making sure crews had enough water to extinguish the remaining hotspots.

Mark, Group Manager at Kent Fire and Rescue Service, said: “It is great seeing the robot being used at incidents. This is an important part of our firefighting toolkit, and it will continue to play a vital role in keeping our firefighters safe whilst potentially reducing the number of resources at an incident so they can respond to other emergencies.” 

The firefighting robot, which is capable of helping fight the fires with a hose attachment that can spray up to 2,000 litres of water a minute, will continue to be out responding to incidents across the county when needed.