Firefighters from Kingsway East fire station have responded to some of Dundee’s biggest blazes over the past 50 years.
Fire crews have seen triumph and tragedy in equal measure in the five decades since the station officially opened its doors on November 15 1972.
Serving around 70,000 people, Kingsway East covers the likes of Fintry, Whitfield, Douglas and Angus, Craigie, Mid Craigie, Linlathen and Mill of Mains.
The patch also extends to the docks area and some of Broughty Ferry.
Life and times
Plans for a new fire station at Kingsway were drawn up in January 1970 and submitted to the Scottish Home and Health Department in February of that year.
The new fully automated station near the Kingsway Circle would be the beginning of a new strategy for the fire department.
Previously, one master fire station for the city would hold up to 12 appliances.
However, in the event of a fire on the outskirts of the city, the appliances had a long way to travel.
They were also at risk of getting caught in rush-hour traffic and not being able to make it to the blaze in time.
Smaller stations, like Kingsway East were believed to be the answer.
Work was started on the new station in August 1971 by W. H. Brown Construction (Dundee), Ltd and completed in June 1972.
Retired firefighter Pete Sinclair said the new fire station started life in September 1972 before being officially opened by the Angus Area Fire Committee in November.
Pete joined the fire brigade at Kingsway in 1975 and worked there till 2005.
He said: “I did most of my initial service at Kingsway East, and then was a station commander for that station as well.
“So, I’ve had quite a lot of experience up there.”
Pete’s 30 years’ of experience at Kingsway East means he saw all the highs and lows as the unit tackled some of Dundee’s fiercest fires.
He also saw how the service evolved over the years, including all the changes in equipment.
Pete said: “As time evolved over the course of my fire brigade career, the demographics of the station changed; all of a sudden we had young men running the business!
“Consider the firefighting kit that we had when I joined, the stuff they had to use was luxury.
“You basically had a pair of Wellington boots, plastic gloves – and that was when you wore gloves.
“You very rarely wore gloves compared to now.”
Alongside their wellies and plastic gloves, Pete and his colleagues wore cork helmets that were eventually painted bright yellow for visibility.
This style of helmet continued in service for almost 15 years.
Pete noticed other significant changes in firefighting equipment over his years of service.
He said: “We used to use how painful our ears were getting from the heat of the fire to test how hot the hose was getting!
“But now they’ve got very technical, protective equipment.
“Proper boots, and tunics, and leggings – we never had any of that back in the day.
“Fire is still as hot as it ever was, but they’re much better equipped than we were.
“The fire engines are also much bigger now, and probably five or six times heavier with all the new equipment they have!”
Memorable incidents
“There were a number of significant incidents that really stick in my mind.
“The Morgan Academy fire in 2001 was a big one, but I especially remember the Glomar Arctic fire.”
On July 4 1998, there was an explosion on the Glomar Arctic IV oil rig which was docked in Dundee’s Prince Charles Wharf.
The men were working on a horizontal brace of the rig when the explosion happened and Pete was among the Kingsway East crew which battled through the night.
He said: “It was a big incident and extremely difficult to rescue people.
“We had real difficulty accessing the workers on the brace and getting oxygen cylinders passed down to them.
“The electrical equipment down there was also giving them some mild electric shocks and things like that.
“Two people died.
“Then we had the difficulty of getting the deceased people out there.”
A fatal accident inquiry took place in the aftermath which accused the two firms responsible for the rig of a string of safety errors which led to the devastating explosion.
It later emerged that Tayside Fire Brigade had been refused access to the rig for a familiarisation inspection only two days before the fire.
Pete added: “We used to have to do the fire safety inspections for properties, to make sure they live up to the standards.
“It doesn’t quite work the same way now, but it was an important part of the job when I was doing it.”
To combat the difficult times and traumatic experiences the crew faced day-to-day, the camaraderie between Pete and his co-workers kept them all going.
He said: “We had people on the team from all walks of life.
“People came from such a wide spectrum of previous occupations.
“We had a lot of former tradesmen like electricians, mechanics, builders, roofers and all the rest of it and it was quite useful to have all those different tradesmen in service.
“For example, if we were putting out a house fire and we needed to get the electricity off, and we had an electrician on the team, he would know how to sort that out safely.
“Anyone that’s worked on roofs and such like, and has a really good knowledge of building construction, can help shape the event as well.
“I was never on any Watch where people didn’t get along.
“At the end of the day, everyone’s life depends on each other.
“It’s very much like being in the army in a way.
“Any animosity with anyone kind of goes out the window the minute you’re on your way to a job.”
Every day was different for Pete and his colleagues although they sometimes found themselves under attack from youngsters whilst in the line of duty.
“We had a spate of incidents called sieges,” he said.
“That was basically people locking themselves in the house, and threatening to set fire to themselves.
“I attended a few sieges where the police were involved in negotiations.
“There was one incident where I was called out in the early hours of the morning to wash the blood off the car park.
“Somebody had been firing a crossbow all over the place.
“Then we had to deal with having petrol-filled balloons dropped on us; we had a lot of bother from kids.
“They’d set off fireworks on us, or they used to jump on the roof of the fire engines, onto the access ladders, and try and get a lift along the road.
“Eventually we had to get the police to come and get them off.
“But the job was also about helping the community as well.
“The last thing you want is to see somebody in distress and if somebody had a house fire, it was just as important to clean up as best as we could and assist in other areas as well.”
Pete and his colleagues organised a 50th anniversary celebration to mark the station’s big birthday.
Pete said: “We hosted a get-together on November 19 at the fire station.
“We had a lot of ex-personnel attend with their families to see all of our old memorabilia.
“The Scottish Heritage Society brought some old fire engines and press cuttings from the opening.
“We had some old photographs too, to show how times have changed.
“People haven’t been to the station for a long time; they really enjoyed seeing it.”
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