Kent Fire and Rescue Service
Creating a safer future – together: Risk assessment

Power stations carry the potential for accidents, fires, or leaks that may need the involvement of Fire and Rescue Services. Additionally, some power stations handle hazardous materials or chemicals, which could potentially result in chemical fires or toxic releases in the event of accidents.

The critical infrastructure of power stations is also susceptible to damage from fires or unforeseen emergencies, with the potential to disrupt power distribution, endanger public safety, and impact emergency response capabilities and resources. Nuclear power stations also specifically have the added concern of radiation hazards during emergencies, demanding a specialized response to effectively prevent or mitigate potential harm. Power stations in Kent include:

• Grain
• Medway
• Damhead Creek
• Allington
• Sevington
• Dungeness (closed but still defuelling)

Power stations are highly regulated and have robust plans in place for emergencies. We are involved in developing and testing these response plans.

• conduct thorough risk assessments of power stations to identify potential hazards and vulnerabilities. Based on these assessments, the Risk Information Team develops comprehensive emergency response plans known as Site Specific Risk Information (SSRI) tailored to the unique risks and requirements of each power station
• ongoing regular training and education on these premises is provided to operational crews within KFRS across all command levels within station-based training, followed by physical site visits and exercises focusing on the specialised knowledge and skills required to respond effectively to incidents in power stations. 
• KFRS collaborates closely with Kent Police, SECAMB, power station operators, utility companies, environmental agencies, and other relevant stakeholders 
• by actively supporting regular emergency response drills at power stations and participating in joint multi-agency exercises encompassing various incident simulation types, KFRS significantly improves the preparedness and proficiency of responders
• we have invested in specialised equipment and officers designed and trained to manage and respond to a range of power station emergencies and incident types. This includes equipment for electrical fires, hazardous material containment, high-temperature incidents, and confined space rescues
• we work closely with the Office for Nuclear Regulation, the Environment Agency, and the Health and Safety Executive, who conduct routine inspections of power stations to ensure compliance with safety regulations and standards 
• KFRS keeps up with technological advancements relevant to power station safety. This includes using drones for aerial assessments, thermal imaging for fire detection, and other advanced equipment and support vehicles to enhance response capabilities
• actively engage in National Fire Chiefs Council prevention, protection, and response working groups, both at strategic and tactical level

• KFRS responds swiftly with well-trained firefighters to contain and extinguish fires, mitigate hazardous material spills, and address any immediate threats to life, property, or the environment
• evacuation of personnel and nearby communities is prioritised to ensure their safety, and appropriate safety measures are implemented to reduce exposure to hazards
• firefighters and responders work to contain the incident, prevent further spread, and manage the situation to minimise damage and risks
• KFRS responding personnel will utilise specialised equipment to combat electrical fires, handle hazardous materials, and manage other unique challenges associated with power station emergencies
• after the incident is under control, KFRS efforts are directed towards recovery, rehabilitation, and restoring normal operations in collaboration with relevant stakeholders
• we deploy volunteer rapid response teams to provide advice and support to homeowners affected by fires at the scene
• prevention, protection, and response colleagues conduct post-incident community work after fires
• collaborate with partners, such as the police, through our fire forensic investigation team to determine the causes of fires and identify emerging trends
• conduct incident debriefs at both local and corporate levels to learn from incidents and continuously improve our response and prevention efforts

The term fuel can mean many things, but here we specifically refer to fossil fuels and their derivatives. This type of fuel is stored across Kent in many different locations from small domestic tanks of heating oil to larger fuel collection and distribution hubs, and at some significant Control of Major Accident Hazards (COMAH) sites located in the north of the county.

Kent has a very large importing facility for Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) at LNG Grain. It is the largest terminal in Europe and eighth largest in the world by tank capacity. Another significant fuel storage site is BP Oils, again located on the Isle of Grain. This site imports and holds significant amounts of aircraft fuel. Both these sites transport their product primarily though pipelines which run across the county, or by road and rail.

Kent ‘s location within the UK also means that we have a significant number of lorries on our roads containing fuel products.

Although the UK’s reliance on fossil fuels is likely to reduce over the coming years with a trend towards more renewable and alternative fuel types, fossil fuels will continue to be a risk for which we need to plan for many years to come.

• work closely with operators of fuel storage sites to ensure that we have assessed the risk scenarios for incidents at these sites
• develop joint emergency response plans with site operators and other agencies
• undertake regular training and exercising at fuel storage sites
• provide specialist foam equipment on selected fire engines
• maintain a specialist bulk foam unit and high-volume hose layers to provide large foam strikes on fuel storage tanks and road tankers
• plan ways in which we can best protect the environment, including how we can contain and manage polluted water runoff
   

• enact pre-determined emergency plans
• our pre-determined attendance includes a specialist foam unit and environmental protection equipment
• we send specially trained hazardous materials officers to liaise with site operators and give specialist advice on the best response
• communicate with the public through warning and informing messages to reduce the impact of smoke plumes
   

The UK government are trying to diversify energy supply and ensure that there is more energy generated from renewable sources as part of the transition to a sustainable and cleaner future. These renewables include wind, solar, hydro, biomass, and wave.

In Kent, the climate and geography mean that there are areas of land that provide ideal conditions for solar farms. However, given the location of Kent and the continued spread of housing and commercial developments, land for these solar projects can often be limited and near buildings and communities. This needs to be considered as part of the planning process.

Kent is bordered by a long coastline and, as a result, is home to some of the largest offshore wind farms in the UK. These do not pose a significant risk or create demand for our services, although there is the potential for secondary issues involving shipping or accidents that may require our attendance.

These types of renewable energy sources generate electricity at specific times – i.e., when the sun is shining, or the wind is blowing. As a result, to achieve balance of supply, this energy is often stored in energy storage sites – typically large battery installations. We have a number of these in Kent. Whilst the likelihood of incidents involving these is low, they do pose a potential risk to the public and firefighters. When they catch fire they can burn to produce toxic smoke plumes. They also can cause impacts on the local environment. As a result, we work closely with developers to ensure that appropriate risk controls and emergency planning arrangements are in place.

• work with local planning authorities to ensure that fire service requirements are considered when energy storage sites are constructed
• liaise closely with the National Fire Chiefs Council to better understand the risks and responses required at these sites
• ensure that our colleagues are provided with the latest risk information
   

• ensure that our plans balance the need to save infrastructure against risks to local communities and the environment
• communicate with the public through warning and informing messages to reduce the impact of smoke plumes
• we send specially trained hazardous materials officers to liaise with site operators and give specialist advice on the best response
• make use of strong global networks we have built in this area to be able to obtain timely specialist advice and guidance
   

Fires or accidents involving utility infrastructure can have both direct risks and indirect risks. Direct risks include injuries and damage arising from events including electrocution, explosion, and hazardous materials release. Indirect risks are those that arise because of the loss of the network or infrastructure. These are often societal in nature but can result in impacts on human health.

Utility networks and infrastructure usually benefit from investment over years and stringent regulation, which helps to drive down the likelihood of incidents occurring. When incidents do occur, response arrangements are typically well planned and resourced.

Where incidents involve significant damage to infrastructure, recovery can take some time – local impacts can be particularly significant.

An example of this was an incident we responded to in 2021. A serious fire in a site key to the management of electricity between the UK and France resulted in a reduction in the amount of electricity available to the national grid for a month.

Whilst these incidents can be impactful and hazardous, we have well defined response arrangements in place with utility companies to ensure that situations can be dealt with effectively and quickly.

• our Emergency Planning team works with utility providers through the Kent Resilience Forum to ensure we understand the issues that the network operators face in the event of fire or other damage
• our Risk Information team collects and manages sensitive information about this critical national infrastructure to ensure that suitable site and risk information is available to incident commanders in the event of a fire or other occurrence
• our firefighters train to National Operational Guidance standards for incidents involving critical national infrastructure to enable an efficient and effective response when required
• we participate in multi-agency exercises through the Kent Resilience Forum simulating incidents in critical national infrastructure that will adversely affect communities in Kent and Medway
   

• we deploy fire crews to incidents who are trained to respond to incidents involving critical national infrastructure, and who have access to site specific information via their fire appliance on board computers
• specialist officers are available to respond to these incidents
• we liaise with site operators to bring incidents safely and effectively to a satisfactory conclusion
• we notify local authorities and other partners about incidents involving utilities where the incident has the potential to adversely affect our communities
   

The loss of public water supplies can have a variety of impacts for us. There can be a resultant loss of the fire hydrant supplies that we typically use to fight large fires. In such a situation we have to send more fire engines to fires, impacting what is available should other incidents occur elsewhere. We do have arrangements to be able to supply water over large distances, and draw from places like rivers and the sea, but this can take some time to implement.

The risk can also be realised without a total loss of water supplies. When water companies experience significant leaks on their network (for example during periods of extreme weather) they often reduce the pressure in affected parts of the network. This can result in a reduction in the water supplies available for firefighting.

Most significantly for the public, the loss of water supplies can result in a loss of drinking water, which can have a particularly high impact on vulnerable people and those living with pre-existing health conditions. Whilst this is not directly related to fire and rescue service activity, it can result in need for our assistance (for example, assisting the ambulance service when their demand goes up) as well as helping with distribution of bottled water supplies and checking on vulnerable people.

Recent years have seen some examples of the loss of public water supplies in Kent. In the summer of 2022, thousands of homes on the Isle of Sheppey experienced a loss of water for several days following a rupture to two major supply pipes. The incident prompted a multi-agency response and was declared a major incident. We implemented a plan to provide an alternative water supply for firefighting purposes, using our high-volume hose to bring supplies onto the island. We also ensured extra fire engines were available in the local area to try and ensure fires were dealt with quickly before they had an opportunity to spread. We also worked with partner agencies to assist with providing support to affected customers.

• with partner agencies and water suppliers working through the Kent Resilience Forum to plan for and exercise the response to possible water infrastructure failures
• we provide bulk water carriers and high-volume pumps to ensure that we can move water for fire fighting into areas where the public water supply has failed
• our engagement team works with partner agencies and water companies to help spread public messaging in relation to water shortages and/or failures in water supply
   

• in the event of water supply issues, we join partners in Strategic and Tactical Coordinating Centres to understand the likely scale and duration of incidents
• we move specialist response resources such as bulk water carriers and hose layers, moving them into the affected areas
• we send more appliances, enhancing the pre-determined attendance, to reported fires in the affected areas to provide more water for the initial fire attack
• we can if required use our community volunteers along with operational and corporate colleagues to support the distribution of water supplies to vulnerable people, along with colleagues from partner agencies