100 troops and Chinook helicopter deployed to Saddleworth Moor

28 Jun 2018 09:41 AM

MOD supports Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service

• UPDATE (08:45 28/06): The Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service have notified the MOD that the RAF Chinook is no longer required. There are currently 100 soldiers from 4 SCOTS deployed alongside the fire service at Saddleworth Moor, and the MOD remains ready and able to support where needed.

Approximately 100 soldiers from 4th Battalion, Royal Regiment of Scotland, and an RAF Chinook helicopter have been deployed to support the Great Manchester Fire & Rescue Service operation responding to the Saddleworth Moor fires

Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said:

I pay tribute to our Armed Forces’ professionalism, dedication and sense of duty. They are proving once again that Britain can always depend on our troops to protect us no matter the time, no matter the place, and no matter the problem.

The troops will deploy overnight from their barracks in Catterick. Operating out of a nearby Army Training Centre, they will assist the effort to control and reduce the fire, undertaking tasks such as the management of water lines, fire beating and providing general support where required.

The RAF Chinook, flying out of RAF Odiham, will arrive tomorrow (28th June) morning. It will airlift heavy equipment such as High Volume Pump Units to areas that are difficult to access due to the terrain.