A shortage of firefighters is forcing some Sussex stations to turn down emergency calls.

Keymer fire station in Mid Sussex was alerted to an emergency last month but could not respond because it did not have enough crew available.

On other occasions fire chiefs have been forced to book the Keymer appliance as 'doubtful' because only three personnel could definitely turn out all day.

Firefighters from Burgess Hill have also been forced to attend a call-out in Hassocks because of the staff shortage.

Meanwhile, similar problems are being experienced at Forest Row, which is also desperate for new recruits to join the crew. The retained crew attends up to 260 emergency calls a year, including forest fires and animal rescues.

Recent call-outs at Keymer include road traffic accidents on the A23, barn fires and rescuing a pensioner trapped in a lift.

Trevor Davey, a Leading Firefighter at Keymer fire station, said: "With the summer holiday period beckoning this situation will get worse before it gets any better. We cannot stress just how urgently new recruits are required.

"People want a fire service but if they are not willing to get involved they could lose it."

Retained firefighters are expected to be able to answer call-outs for a minimum of 70 per cent of the time.

Last month Keymer responded to 24 emergency calls of which only seven were alerted between the normal working hours of 9am to 5pm so the amount of interference to main jobs is limited. Retained firefighters earn in the region of £5,000 per year.

Anyone interested in joining Keymer fire station should contact Peter Twine on 01273 842617 or Mr Davey on 01273 843319, Wednesday evenings only.

For information about joining Forest Row contact Neville Padgham on 01342 822530 or Dave Sutton on 01892 745903.