Families in Maldon were welcomed to their community fire station for a detailed look inside the work of fire crews.

Maldon Fire Station, in Spital Road, opened itself up to the public for its annual open day, hosting a range of demonstrations and displays to show what the team takes on every day.

Visitors were allowed to take a look inside the fire engines, as well as being showed a range of equipment they will use during police incidents and to help fire crew members with their breathing during particularly smoke-logged incidents.

The fire station paid thanked the dozens of visitors who came to find out more about the team who work tirelessly to keep Maldon safe. A station spokesman said: “Thank you to all who came up to our annual fire station open day.

“It was a fantastic day at the station all round.

“We even had a couple of incidents to attend, which meant you able to see what happens at the station when a call comes through.

“We look forward to having the community all over again next year and here are more events to come before the end of 2019.”

As well as this weekend’s open day, Maldon Fire Station carried out an evening of drills, testing the crew on what to do when they face a chemical leak.

Before the open day on Sunday, the team were suited and booted in the equipment they would need to tackle a case that could potentially contaminate an area.

The teams faced a range of scenarios where they would have to work to try to safely dispose of a high-risk substance.

A spokesman for Maldon Fire Station said: “On Monday 2 September we had our weekly drill night. “We went through a scenario in which we had a chemical leak, in which we needed to set up our gas-tight suit and decontamination procedure.

“This involved containing the chemical and creating a safe situation.

“The crew then move through the showers before taking off their suits to ensure the chemical does not come into contact with anyone.”