Fire and Rescue Attended Incidents Update - May 2025

Avon Fire and Rescue have just published their incident data for May 2025.

Attended incidents have increased every month in 2025, with 580 in May.

Here are some charts for May 2025 incidents. You can see all the reports on BU Reports (look for "Fire and Rescue" button on contents page).

37% of the attended incidents in May 2025 were false alarms

Looking at the number of "Population per Incident", Central had the highest number of incidents, and Brislington West had the lowest.

These are the property types for fire incidents

There were 11 attended fire incidents at the prison

There were 7 "Animal Assistance" non-fire incidents. 2 of those appear to be animals being rescued from cars.

Solar Panel Related Fires

The most notable fire in May was at St Michael's Maternity Hospital on 22nd May, which involves solar panels on the roof.

Avon Fire and Rescue Service station manager Ben Thorpe confirmed the cause was "accidental" and "due to a fault in the solar panels".

Mr Thorpe said there had been an increase in fires caused by solar panels.

"I think the statistics are showing that they are on the increase although of course solar panel installations are on the increase," he explained.

"Solar panels are inherently safe but I would say the advice given is that people should ensure they use a reputable company, they are qualified to install solar panels, with a regular maintenance schedule put in place."

In April 2022 there was another large fire caused by birds who damaged solar panels on the roof of "We The Curious".

The building was closed for 2 years, whilst the damaged caused was repaired. The multi million pound repair bill cost much more than any savings that came from the use of solar panels.

Perhaps the council should spend some money on protecting their solar panels from birds.

The root cause of the fire highlights the importance of bird-proofing solar panel installations. Birds can cause substantial damage by nesting under panels or dropping debris that can lead to malfunctions. Implementing a bird-proofing solution like BirdBlocker could have prevented the birds from accessing and damaging the panels, thereby avoiding the subsequent electrical fault and fire. BirdBlocker provides a reliable and effective way to protect solar panel installations from bird-related damage, ensuring the longevity and safety of solar energy systems.