A number of Norfolk fire stations could face closure as part of controversial proposals to plug a multi-million pound county council savings gap, the EDP can exclusively reveal today.

And that sparked a warning from firefighters that public safety could be at risk if the axe does fall on any of the county's 42 stations.

With departments at Norfolk County Council asked to identify a 25pc reduction in spending over the next three years, that will have major implications across a range of services, including Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service.

Options councillors will be asked to consider could include cutting the number of fire stations, removing fire engines or changing how fire engines are crewed.

Heacham fire station, near King's Lynn, which is staffed by retained firefighters, rather than a wholetime crew, is rumoured to be one at risk - although the council stresses no decisions have been taken.

Nigel Williams, chief fire officer, said: 'Councillors and officers know this will not be easy and there will be some difficult decisions to be made.

'For the fire service, already recognised, independently, to be a highly efficient service, this spending challenge limits the options we have.

'As the percentage of cuts to budget increases, the closer we are to having to reduce the operational capability of the service.

'Options may include changes to how fire engines are crewed, reducing the number of fire stations at stations and/or removing fire engines and possibly fire stations completely.'

Mr Williams said no decisions had been made, but that, if stations were to be shut, risks would be carefully weighed up to ensure cover.

The county council announced in June it needed to find ways to plug a £111m funding gap over the next three years. The authority launched a Reimagining Norfolk strategy to cope in the face of dwindling grants from the government.

As part of that, every committee - be it children's services, adult social services or, under the communities remit, Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service - has been asked to plan what their department would look like with 75pc of their budget. Over the coming month those committees will reveal their proposals.

That would save £169m, more than the actual funding gap. But the headroom would give councillors some element of choice over which services would be axed.

It would mean, for example, that the communities committee's spending, which pays for services such as the fire brigade and libraries, would shrink from the current £103.3m to £81.6m by 2018/19.

But Kevin Game, secretary for the Norfolk branch of the Fire Brigades Union, said: 'It's very scary and we have been scared for quite a few years now.

'We have been cut to the bone for the last two to three years and this would be breaking the bone in half. We are already the cheapest service in terms of our cost per head of the population, yet we cover one of the biggest geographical areas.

'We are at maximum capacity as it is, so if any stations were to close, that would have a massive detrimental effect on the safety of the public.'

A spokeswoman for Norfolk County Council, said an initial discussion about a number of services, including Norfolk Fire and Rescue Service, would take place at the council's communities committee on September 9.

She added: 'The final decision about all service budgets will be taken by full council in February after a full public consultation.'

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