Sub officer Mike Radcliffe and station commander Steve Pearce with, in the background, Gareth Saunders and Paul Gates of Wiltshire Ambulance Service and assistant chief fire officer Peter Baxter (30761)MEMBERS of the emergency services are working together to better serve the community.

Retained firefighters in Melksham are some of the first in the county to be given extra training and equipment to deal with medical emergencies that can cause heart failure.

The idea is that locally based fire brigade vehicles can be sent out to reach patients in rural areas quicker than ambulances which are based further away.

They then have the relevant expertise to deal with a range of medical conditions before the ambulance arrives.

Paul Gates, director of operations for the ambulance service, said: "It is a well known medical fact that there is a higher chance of survival if someone applies basic life saving skills within four-five minutes of collapse.

"The public do not mind whether an ambulance gets to them or a fire engine as long as they know what they're doing."

Fire crews have had defibrillators and oxygen supplies, used to treat those with heart failure, on board for the past three years but the new training means they can treat conditions before they cause heart failure, like choking, collapse and fitting.

The aim is to expand the training across the 17 retained stations in the county.

Peter Barker, assistant chief fire officer, said: "The training is to equip members of the fire service to expand and improve community protection across some of the remotest parts of Wiltshire. It's all about making that vital difference to a patient's life."