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Dorset & Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service (DWFRS) has invested nearly half a million pounds in a new Unimog — an all-wheel-drive off-road vehicle — to help it tackle heath fires and other incidents.
DWFRS already has a Unimog, based at Wareham fire station, which has proved invaluable, especially at large-scale incidents. A project to replace the multi-functional vehicle – which is now 16 years old – started about three years ago.
After a huge amount of work across the Service, working with the external supplier, the new vehicle arrived in April. Following extensive testing and driver training, it is now operationally available and has already been used at three wildfire incidents over the weekend.
“As part of our commitment to the on-going development of our vehicles and equipment, I am really pleased to confirm we now have our new Unimog in service and able to respond to incidents, which can include flooding and thatch fires as well as large fires in the open.”
He added: “We have seen a significant increase in the number of wildfires across our Service area over the past five years, and the Unimog has been an invaluable asset to tackling these. The new vehicle has some new features, which will enhance our firefighting capabilities not just on our heaths but in other hard-to-reach rural locations.”
Assistant Chief Fire Officer Darren Langdown.
It has a capacity of 4,500 litres of water and 162 litres of foam, together with front, rear and roof mounted monitors that can direct large quantities of water or foam at a fire.
The off-road capability of the new machine has been significantly enhanced due to the upgrade in tyres, along with the addition of a low ratio gear box and the ability to set the tyre pressures to the type of terrain at the touch of a button.
DWFRS’s Unimog investment comes as new National Resilience data shows that wildfire incidents in England and Wales this year have topped 500, which represents a 717% increase on the same period in 2024. With temperatures soaring in many parts of the UK, the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) is urging caution among members of the public when enjoying the outdoors in a bid to prevent further spikes in incidents.
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