Firefighters’ festive good deed for OAP

But in the season of good will, Sheffield firefighters have been praised for going above and beyond the call of duty to help a vulnerable resident in Sheffield over the Christmas period.

In an act of festive kindness, crews from South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue brought round a roast dinner and helped clean the vulnerable man’s flat after neighbours expressed concern.

Central Blue watch firefighters attended the property on Edgedale Road, in Nether Edge, and managed to clear 15 bags of rubbish that accumulated in the man’s house.

After gaining access to the flat, firefighters checked on the well-being of the man, who lived alone, and identified a number of issues which were likely to put him at a greater risk of fire.

Firefighters installed three smoke alarms as a festive good will gesture.

The resident has now been referred to the fire service’s High Risk Coordinators for further intervention work.

Tony Carlin, South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Group Manager, praised the staff.

He said: “Everyone knows the fire service does a fantastic job attending emergency incidents.

“But our wider contribution to the health and wellbeing of local communities is both little known and growing.

“On this occasion, firefighters not only put in place meaningful interventions to make this man safer, they actually assisted him in ways which went above and beyond the call of duty.

“That’s testament to the fantastic skills and dedication of all our staff.”