ON the hottest day since records began, the people of Porlock turned up the heat even more with an unprecedented 600-strong march through the village streets last Thursday.

They were out in force to protest against the possible closure of their fire station.

“Porlock has never seen anything like this,” said local MP Ian Liddell-Grainger, helping to carry a massive banner at the head of the procession.

“This is a fight that has to be won.”

The march was demonstrating against the proposal to close the award-winning station – one of eight Devon and Somerset fire stations under threat – transfer resources to areas with more urgent needs and invest in education and fire prevention.

Led by town crier Grant Dennis and two crimson-clad stilt-walkers, the procession wound through the streets from the fire station to a Devon and Somerset fire authority public consultation at the village hall, amid cheers, songs and fluttering banners and placards.

Porlock was not alone in its fight. Hours before the scheduled march, reinforcements were arriving from surrounding towns and villages – delegations from across Exmoor dependent on Porlock for fire safety – Exford to Timberscombe, Wootton Courtenay to Oare, Luccombe to Allerford.

Minehead Town Council was out in force, headed by the mayor and deputy mayor, Cllr Sandra Slade and Cllr Paul Bolton, their civic chains glinting in the sun.

The younger generation was represented by pupils from the village’s St Dubricius First School, dressed in mini firemen’s helmets and carrying placards.

One six-year-old said: “The fire station keeps our village safe. We have written a song about it.”

As protestors formed up for the march, firefighters watched from the nearby station and manager Chris Horne said the team was overwhelmed by the support it had received.

“You don’t get community spirit like this in many places,” he said.

Addressing the crowd from the bonnet of a Land Rover, district councillor Andy Milne, leader of the 14-strong steering group, said: “We are marching to the village hall to ask the authorities one simple question: Why are they considering closing the most successful fire station in Devon and Somerset?

“You all know why we should keep our station – unacceptable drive times from stations at Minehead, Lynton and Dulverton, the value of our co-responders – the nearest ambulance is likely to be at least an hour away.

“But our corresponders, like our firefighters, can be with the casualty within five or ten minutes.

“Then there is the fire risk of the 87 thatched cottages in the district, and a vulnerable ageing population more than 30 per cent over 60.”

Cllr Milne added: “With climate change, the moor is drying up and will burn more. We need the specialist skills of this fire station. We pay our taxes and we expect the same service as everybody else.

“We welcome plans for a cost-effective fire service but not at the expense of our lives, our property and Exmoor.

“Rural isolation, a vulnerable population and tourist influx makes us unique. We demand that our station is removed from the list of stations under consideration for closure.”

He called for three cheers for the Porlock firefighters who gave their time and energy to make residents’ lives safer.

Mr Liddell-Grainger said he had already talked to Prime Minister Boris Johnson, whose family home near Winsford is in the Porlock fire station catchment area.

He told the crowd: “I will petition Parliament and I will be talking to Boris again because this is his fire station.

“This needs sorting out. It is just another example of the authorities being dismissive of local areas. We need to keep fighting and making ourselves awkward.”

As the protest moved off, hundreds waved banners and joined in an alternative version of the London’s Burning nursery-rhyme with the words:

“Porlock’s burning, Porlock’s burning

Fetch the engines, fetch the engines

They’re in Minehead, they’re in Minehead.”

Porlock parish councillors headed the procession as it snaked towards the village hall.

“We are all vulnerable and fearful for the future without the fire fighters and first responders. We are the oldest population in West Somerset,” said Cllr Terry Gable, whose flame-painted face was adorned with the slogan ‘What price my life?’.

Council chairman Malcolm McCoy believed the cuts were illogical and they would be losing firefighters with skills and dedication and Cllr Will Rayner, a member of the steering group, asked: “Is it worth putting lives at risk to save £55,000?”

He added: “In a recent house fire in Porlock had the local firefighters not been there it would have taken 40 minutes for another team to get there, putting more lives and property at risk.”

As campaigners filled the hall to capacity and spilled outside, Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Services Association representative Ben Redwood told the Free Press: “We completely oppose closing the Porlock station.

“We believe that there are viable alternatives. We simply can’t have a gap of 45 minutes between Minehead and Lynton.

There is a catastrophic reduction in resources that we simply can’t stand by and watch.

“We have been trying to find middle ground but, although we are still in talks, there is as yet no sign of any acceptable compromise.”

Dr Ian Kelham, who recently retired after 23 years as a Porlock GP, believed that losing the fire service first responders would be a disaster for the area.

“They have been my valuable allies in looking after probably the oldest population in the whole of Europe – female life expectancy here is 91.

“There have been cases where there has been a three-hour wait for an ambulance for an elderly person and having co-responders available in these cases is of enormous value.

“For medical and safety reasons, the Porlock fire station is surely irreplaceable.”

Someone who heartily agrees with that is local resident Fred Keen whose wife was treated by first responders for a suspected heart attack half an hour before an ambulance arrived.

He believed it was a service vital for the elderly population and one that should not be lost.

“I hope Boris will sort this out because he’s a local lad,” Mr Keen said.