A Jumbo Challenge

Firefighters from Essex County Fire and Rescue Service (ECFRS) along with colleagues from Essex Police and East of England Ambulance Service performed a large-scale rope rescue exercise at Jumbo.

The exercise involved the coordination of crews from Urban Search and Rescue, Technical Rescue and partnering agencies to rescue four casualties, played by actors and mannequins on different levels of the 40.5m tower.

Crew Manager and exercise lead Tom Jewell said:

“Opportunities to use iconic buildings for rope rescue exercises don’t come around very often, so we are grateful to North Essex Heritage for letting us use it.”

Simon Hall MBE DL, Chair of North Essex Heritage, said:

“We were delighted to help Essex Fire and Rescue Service with their essential training. Jumbo has been part of the Colchester skyline for 140 years and this Grade ll* Listed building provided a unique challenge for the rescue teams.”