Hampshire firefighting twins retire after 68 years of service
Identical twin brothers are retiring from the fire service with "incredible memories" after a combined 68 years of on-call duty.Dave and Paul Minall were presented with certificates by chief fire officer Neil Odin at Whitchurch Fire Station, in Hampshire, during drill night on Wednesday.Dave, who is a crew manager at the station, joined in May 1990, with his brother coming on board two years later, after initially failing to meet the height requirements.Paul said he had "thoroughly enjoyed" the work and had witnessed "a great deal of change for the better over the years".
Hampshire & Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue Service (HIWFRS) said both brothers had also enjoyed long careers at nearby Portals Paper Mill alongside their firefighting duties.While on shift at the papermaking company, they would respond to neighbouring Overton Fire Station for call-outs.Dave even made newspaper headlines about 20 years ago, after being stopped by police for speeding down a hill on his bicycle while on his way to the fire station to respond to an incident, said HIWFRS.For Paul, a highlight he "recalls fondly" was when a local restaurant gave out meals to firefighters during a long incident.The restaurant initially mistook Paul for his identical twin "coming back for seconds" and denied him any food.He said being an on-call firefighter "is a big part of your life", adding: "But I have thoroughly enjoyed it and have witnessed a great deal of change for the better over the years."The crew at Whitchurch have become a second family and got me through some tough times."Being in the fire service has been really interesting and I take away with me some incredible memories."
Watch manager Rich Scarth described the twins as "two of the nicest men you could ever meet" and "valuable members" of the team.He said: "On-call firefighters are required to balance their personal and work lives against their on-call responsibilities. "To provide that service, for that many years, shows the dedication and commitment Dave and Paul have for our area and the people that live here."Also departing the station is Dave's wife Tanya, who has cleaned the building since 2017.Mr Scarth said the Minalls "will be missed by all, and will always be welcome to pop in for a cup of tea".
You can follow BBC Hampshire & Isle of Wight on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
40 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
LIZ JONES: With this As Ever launch, Meghan's finally found a money-spinner that will work... because she's realised one key thing
'No more sleeps!' That was the over-excited, slightly infantile proclamation on the Duchess of Sussex 's Instagram account this morning. There was even a ticking clock counting down the seconds before the summer drop of new products landed on her As Ever website. 'Here we go!' shouted the next post, along with a photo of Meghan in a garden swing, hair flowing, sleeves puffy. My excitement could barely be contained. I was on tenterhooks!
BBC News
42 minutes ago
- BBC News
Rockcliffe gas plant refused over 'health implications'
A proposed gasification plant has been rejected because councillors felt the evidence of the long-term health implications was for a plant that would use rubbish to produce gas at North West Recycling's (NWR) waste processing compound near Carlisle were discussed a special meeting of Cumberland Council's planning the meeting, concerns were raised that the evidence provided was not clear, with five members voting to reject the application and two voting to refusal marked the end of an 18-month struggle by residents who opposed the revised proposal over health and safety fears. There were jubilant scenes and a spontaneous round of applause from the public gallery at the refusal, the Local Democracy Reporting Service Regeneration had applied for permission to build the plant at the NWR site in had been recommended full planning permission be granted, subject to councillors were sympathetic to the plight of nearest neighbour, farmer John Story, who raised the impact on his family's health by living so close to the site. Speaking after the decision, Mr Story said he was genuinely "elated".He said he was proud of the more than 1,200 people who objected to the Story added: "My youngest is asthmatic, and the don't know what it's going to be like on the long-term, whether it'll be five years or 10 years or 15 years."Concerns were raised after a fire broke out at the waste site in 2021, and raged for a approached, no-one from North-west Regeneration was available for comment. Follow BBC Cumbria on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
BBC News
an hour ago
- BBC News
A420 shut as firefighters tackle blaze near police station
A key A-road has been closed in both directions following a blaze breaking out in a derelict firefighters from Dorset and Wiltshire Fire & Rescue Service are battling the flames, near to Gablecross Police Station, in South A420 Shrivenham Road was closed by Wiltshire Police at about 16:00 BST to allow firefighters to "work safely", the force confirmed. A fire spokesperson added that the "incident is being brought under control" and they hoped to scale back attendance within the next half hour. They added that "the building's has collapsed inward, which may impact when a fire investigation can be carried out".
