Sirens, guns and ice-creams – all part of the fun !

GUNS, riot shields, tazers and IEDs were just some of equipment on display today as hundreds of families gathered at the Southern Road Recreation ground in Thame, to enjoy the sunshine and to find out about the work of the emergency services.

The 2017 Thame Emergency Services Day was co-ordinated by PCSO James Hopkin, a member of the Thame neighbourhood police team, with the support of Thame Town Council. Visitors were able to learn about the different roles in the police force, including the firearms section, the Public Order team and the Traffic Division. There were plenty of activities for children including exploring the inside of emergency vehicles like ambulances, fire engines and even an army rescue helicoptor. There were stalls with information about working for the emergency services and anyone could have a go at learning how to do CPR, seeing how remote-controlled ‘robots’ operate to help bomb disposal experts examine and render safe explosive devices, without putting themselves in danger.

Oxfordshire Lowland Search and Rescue were also there, showing off their equipment and techniques, with their rescue canoes attracting particular attention from the younger children. The various Thame cadet organisations were represented too chatting to potential new sign-ups about the great fun and challenges that they enjoy as members.

Second only to the long queue to see inside the helicopter, was that for the ice-cream van – just as popular among the emergency services staff as with the children !

More pictures HERE (click on the icon, top right, of a rectangle with arrow in the centre, and view as a slide show) PLEASE NOTE – all these images are copyright of Sonja Francis. Please ASK if you want to reproduce them elsewhere or download them.