Bishop Auckland’s new fire station was opened on Saturday, with an official ceremony and open day.
On hand with the official speeches and opening were local figures Lord Barnard, Helen Goodman MP, and newly elected mayor Lesley Zair.
Men in uniform were thick on the ground, with firemen wearing full kit and their officers looking smart in their black dress uniform and silver pips, the spectacle was completed with Police officers, and mountain rescue teams complete with harness, crampons and ropes.
Community involvement was the key word for the events of the day, with all kinds of displays designed to involve, inform and educate the public, who rose to the occasion making the day a huge success.
Entertainment consisted of bouncy castles, the fun house, and fire engines available for all to clamber over, as well as loads of demonstration on putting fires out rescuing people from burning buildings to a stunning display of the equipment needed to cut a trapped driver from his crushed car.
See more photos in our Flickr set – Bishop Auckland Community Fire Station Open Day.