Bonfire hit squads ensured safety
Published Wednesday, 10 November 2010
Bonfire hit squads removed more than 50 illegal bonfires in the run-up to November 5th as part of the council's annual safety campaign.
And whilst, in the majority of locations across South Lanarkshire, work was undertaken without incident, police had to be called in to protect staff in the Fernhill area of Rutherglen. Indeed, land services teams were subjected to threatening behaviour whilst removing bonfire material in a number of locations throughout the Rutherglen and Cambuslang areas.
Each of the four main geographical areas had its own squad, all with access to a wide range of tools and vehicles to ensure that bonfires, which could constitute a danger, were removed swiftly and safely.
As well as acting on information from the public, the hit squads liaised with police and community wardens to target known 'hot spots' of stockpiled material.
The final breakdown of sites for the annual campaign, which ran from 1-5 November were:
- Hamilton Area - more than 15 tonnes of material removed from 12 sites
- East Kilbride area - 8-10 tonnes of material removed from 15 sites
- Rutherglen/Cambuslang - more than 18 tonnes of material removed from 16 sites
- Clydesdale Area - more than six tonnes of material from six sites
