ANTI-SOCIAL parking is preventing emergency vehicles from gaining access to where they are needed in areas of East Cornwall, Callington Town Council was told last week.

Firefighter and deputy portreeve of Callington Town Council Cllr Mark Smith highlighted the issue at a meeting of the full council, following a recent incident in Calstock where the fire engine was unable to get down the road because people had parked inconsiderately and had to find another way of getting to the emergency.

‘There was a situation in Calstock last week where we just couldn’t get through,’ he said. ‘In our best efforts, it just doesn’t cut the mustard.

‘People are continuing to park in a way that obstructs emergency vehicles — people just don’t care enough.’

‘Unfortunately police are limited as to what they can do and we [the fire service] have no power. It delays us getting to jobs — the last thing you want to see is your house burning down and several fireman running down the road with as much kit as they can carry because they can’t get the vehicle through.’

Cllr Jeremy Gist said: ‘It is a serious problem and it is a problem that is getting worse. More and more households now have more than one car. We need to raise as much awareness about this issue as possible.’

It was unanimously agreed at the meeting that the clerk would write to neighbouring parish and town councils to raise the issue with them and to ask them to write to residents and highlight the issues in their parish magazines.

Cornwall Councillor for Calstock Cllr Dorothy Kirk said parking as a whole was a problem in most villages where the houses and cottages were built before the time of cars, meaning no parking allocation, but people needed to park more responsibly.

‘I was quite shocked when I heard that the fire engine couldn’t get through in Calstock,’ she said. ‘It is thoughtless parking and can cause accidents. We do have to show some sympathy for people who live on roads where there is no parking, but we need to have a serious policy on parking and help people to park more responsibly.

‘In Calstock there are a number of car parks which are free so one would imagine that there was enough parking so people wouldn’t have to park on the roads. It is a problem that we, as a parish council, are trying to address by currently negotiating to take over the Cornwall Council-owned car parks in the parish and looking to give residents parking permits.’

Cllr Kirk said that when she learned to drive, she was told it was illegal to park at junctions, however it seemed to be a problem in the villages, which she said could cause a number of accidents by people not being able to see clearly as they pull out, or not being able to see a pedestrian walking out from between the cars.

A spokesperson from Cornwall Fire and Rescue said: ‘Cornwall Fire and Rescue Service would like to raise awareness to the public within the area to be considerate when they park their cars.

‘Please ensure that access is maintained for emergency service vehicles to pass safely through and without potentially delaying the response times to incidents.’