Museum appeals for emergency worker stories

A Sheffield museum has appealed for people to share the personal stories of emergency services workers as part of a new online exhibition.

The National Emergency Services Museum has launched the Inspire 999 collection to mark the annual Emergency Services Day.

The project currently featured more than 50 past and present stories, but the museum said it welcomed further public submissions about either themselves or loved ones.

Matt Wakefield, the museum's chief executive, said the record would celebrate the "ordinary people who do extraordinary jobs".

The resource included audio recordings of Doug Lightning, a firefighter who battled blazes following the Sheffield Blitz in World War Two.

Mr Lightning, who died aged 99 in 2003, was "hailed as a hero for putting out a raging fire on the roof" of Sheffield Town Hall, the project said.

It also told the story of Lee Parker, an air ambulance paramedic who was one of the first to land at the scene of the London 7/7 bombings in July 2005.

But further stories of emergency workers "behind the uniform" must be gathered, Mr Wakefield said.

"The ambulance service for example sees everything in life from best to worst," he told BBC Radio Sheffield.

"They can literally go straight from a birth to a death and everything in between."

Asked whether emergency workers felt appreciated in 2024, Mr Wakefield described it as "a tough question".

"In some ways [they do feel appreciated], but in some ways, no," he answered.

"Most fire engines for example have to have plastic windscreens and side windows because they're still targeted when they go into some areas - fire crews going in to save people and premises."

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