Group Manager William Wyllie is responsible for this fire station.   He can be contacted about general matters regarding this station. William is based at the Barrow and South Lakeland Area Office, Phoenix Road, Barrow in Furness, LA14 2NS

Telephone:  01229 615740

Email:  william.wyllie@cumbriacc.gov.uk

In 1999, Dalton Fire Brigade celebrated it's 125th birthday. It all began in March 1874, when the Local Council decided that a Fire Brigade should be set up and that the town's fire hydrants should be tested at least once a quarter. Mr William Rawlinson was appointed Captain, and Mr Edward Mitchell was the hydrant man. In reward for their services, the men were paid half a crown a turn-out! The Brigade did not last long. The following year, they were accused of not testing hydrants properly, and had their pay cut in half. This prompted a mass resignation of the whole of the Fire Brigade. 

By 1885, the brigade had been re-formed and, along with the Ambulance Service and the horses, were stationed in new premises on Station Road. The horses were so well trained that when the fire bell sounded, they would trot to the fire engine and position themselves at their places by the shaft. Like today, the fire engine was always ready to turn out, with its boiler full and its fire ready to light, very similar to the Volvo we have now which always has a tank full of water, a tank full of diesel and a charged-up battery. The most renowned fire captain of this era was 'Mad Captain Dunne', so-called because of the excessive speed at which he drove the horses through the streets of Dalton. 

Times and transport have changed and the Pump Ladder Rescue, call sign Dalton-two, is bigger, faster and carries a lot more kit. 

Dalton Retained Fire Station is staffed by 12 part-time firefighters, all of whom combine their full-time jobs with turning out at a moment's notice when the alerter goes off. As a station we attend many varied turnouts, anything from the rescuing of an injured bird to multi-pump industrial blazes and fires on-board naval vessels at the nearby shipyard. We also play a part in fund-raising activities for local and brigade charities, always leading the way in the Dalton Parade. 

Life as a Retained Firefighter in Dalton is never dull, and is certainly not predictable.