FIREFIGHTERS have warned lives could be put at risk by proposals to cut staffing at Didcot and Abingdon fire stations.

The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) has claimed an Oxfordshire County Council plan to axe staff at the two stations and move them elsewhere in the county will slow response times and could lead to deaths.

Modernisation plans would cut two full-time posts at both Didcot and Abingdon, in order to employ more part-time, or retained, firefighters.

If the plans are approved, one fire engine from Rewley Road, Oxford, will be taken out of the city at weekends to provide standby cover in the two towns.

The chairman of FBU Oxfordshire Steve Allen said: “We are potentially talking about delaying fire crews by three to five minutes, and that will have a definite effect on survival rates of fires.

“There could be a higher possibility of death as a result of reduced fire cover. This is not something we want to see proven.”

But Oxfordshire County Council’s chief fire officer, John Parry, said: “There would be the same number of firefighters (across the county) on the same number of fire engines responding to incidents in the future as there is today.

“We have a responsibility to ensure we are delivering the best possible service and value for money for all Oxfordshire residents.”

Twelve weeks of consultations start next month, before a cabinet decision is taken in spring.