Their Royal Highnesses The Duke and Duchess of Gloucester have officially opened Cheltenham West Community Fire Station in Tewkesbury Road, Cheltenham.

The distinguished guests were treated to an escorted tour of the state-of-the-art facility by Deputy Chief Fire Officer Geoff Sallis and Station Commander Richard Lockyer. After being introduced to members of the duty watch and viewing displays of the firefighting equipment, the royal couple officially opened the new station with the unveiling of a plaque.

Constructed as part of Gloucestershire County Council’s multi-million pound Community Safety Project scheme, Cheltenham West was the first of four new community fire stations across Gloucestershire to go operational when it opened its doors in April.

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Key features include three bays for rescue vehicles and a purpose built training building which enables firefighters to train on a range of practical scenarios such as ladder work, breathing apparatus and search and rescue. A basement area can be used for both firefighting and flooding training to test and develop firefighters' operational skills.

At the opening, Deputy Chief Fire Officer Sallis, said: "It is an honour to welcome the Duke and Duchess to our new state-of-the-art station. They will be able to see first-hand the benefits of this new facility when responding to emergencies in the county.

"It, alongside our other community stations, will help our firefighters meet their eight-minute response deadline and boost Gloucestershire's service, not only locally but across the region when needed."

(CD)