Firefighter hit with cricket ball-sized rock thrown from second-floor window while tackling blaze at old Farringdon police station
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Nathan Gray came under attack while he and crew members were dealing with a fire at the former Farringdon station. The 40-year-old spotted someone on the second floor of the building throw something out of a window towards him, which turned out to be a lump of breeze block that hit hom on the shoulder.
Thankfully, the dad-of-two wasn’t injured but the incident highlights the dangers faced by firefighters on duty.
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Hide AdNathan, who is based at Farringdon Community Fire Station, said: “We’d had a number of issues at that site, to the point where a crew was there every other night putting out secondary fires. The old Police Station is completely derelict and is a very dangerous environment for people to be inside – we had concerns for the safety of those who were entering as they could find themselves in need of rescuing.
"So when we attended that night, we knew what might happen and brought the police and neighbourhood warden along with us. The rock hit my shoulder but luckily I wasn’t hurt, but I told my crew to get into the appliance quickly and we left the scene - we saw them run off as we were leaving.
“I just don’t understand why you would want to hurt someone for just doing their job, it’s disappointing. Most of my crew live in the local community too and we just want to keep the public and our families safe and shouldn’t be punished for that.”
Nathan shared his experience in the run-up to Bonfire Night and at a time when Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service (TWFRS) says attacks on crews have doubled in the last 12 months across the area it covers. The brigade is currently running its Darker Nights campaign, which aims to highlight the dangers around fires and fireworks and urges parents to help crackdown on anti-social behaviour.