Fire control rooms in Aberdeen and Inverness will close in what has been described as a “disaster” for the north.
The former Grampian and Highlands and islands areas will be covered from Dundee as the number of call centres shrinks from eight to just three – in Tayside, Edinburgh and Johnstone, Renfrewshire.
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service board yesterday voted overwhelmingly in favour of the shake-up – by nine votes to three – at a packed meeting in Dundee attended by dozens of concerned staff.
Shutting operations at Mounthooly in Aberdeen and at Seafield Road at Inverness will help raise £18million across the country through a property sell-off and save £4.5million in running costs.
About 50 staff in Aberdeen and Inverness will be affected.
The board heard that Aberdeen employees could potentially make a 140-mile round-trip commute to an upgraded centre now planned for Dundee.
After the meeting, Darren Gibb, Aberdeen representative of the Fire Brigades Union, said: “Staff will be devastated today.
“The main problem now is that a large part of the north will be left exposed.
“Moving the control rooms to Dundee is simply a disaster for the north and it is something we are deeply concerned by.
“I do feel there is a lack of understanding by management as to what actually happens in a control room. Local knowledge is key.
“Further discussions will have to take place.”
Centralising control room operations was one of six options considered yesterday after board members approved the three-centre model in principle in September.
The plan approved – and the closures in Aberdeen and Inverness – was one of the more expensive options at about £2.5million.
New figures presented suggested the cost of the Dundee centre could be driven down by around £1.1million by adaptations to its computer network.
Aberdeen’s control centre at Mounthooly was disregarded, despite it being recognised as one of the busiest existing facilities.
The report presented yesterday also said that no major spend would be required on technology or the upgrade of the building.
However, fire chiefs said that creating a new system in Aberdeen could be hazardous – given its busy live environment.
Hiring and retaining staff in Aberdeen was also problematic, according to the report, but considerably easier in the higher unemployment area of Dundee.
Keeping a control room in Inverness was judged unrealistic, as displaced staff would be unlikely to relocate there and there was no room for expansion at the centre.
Keeping a Highland base was also predicted to create “operational complexities” should the other control rooms be centred much further south.