65 people rescued by firefighters in the Borders as non-fire deaths more than double
Last updated 22nd Jun 2026
New figures reveal firefighters in the Scottish Borders rescued 65 people in the six months up to April.
The number of non-fire deaths also more than doubled during the same period - from six last year to 13 this year.
However, a report being presented to councillors reveals the total number of incidents local crews responded to fell.
And almost half the call-outs were false alarms.
It comes as fire chiefs are being recommended to end round-the-clock staffing of the station in Hawick.
Crews across the region attended 134 fires during the reporting period and recorded one fire-related death.
A report published ahead of Wednesday's meeting of the local authority's Safer Communities committee states: "Scottish Borders recorded 31 accidental dwelling fires during Quarter 3 and Quarter 4 of 2025-26. This represents a slight reduction from the 33 incidents recorded during Quarter 1 and Quarter 2 and a significant reduction from the 43 incidents recorded during the same period in 2024-25.
"Whilst accidental dwelling fires continue to occur across all areas of the Scottish Borders, the overall reduction compared with the previous year is encouraging and reflects the continued focus on prevention activity, early intervention and targeted engagement with vulnerable individuals.
"Cooking-related incidents remain a significant contributor to accidental dwelling fires, reinforcing the importance of ongoing Home Fire Safety Visit activity and partnership referrals.
"Reducing accidental dwelling fires remains a key local priority due to the potential impact on life, property and community wellbeing."
Of the 65 rescues, 62 people were rescued during non-fire emergencies, including road traffic collisions, flooding incidents, water rescues and humanitarian assistance callouts.
This is an increase from 45 rescues during the first six months of the financial year, and 40 from the same period the year before.
And, according to the report, demonstrates the increasingly diverse role of SFRS in responding to emergencies beyond traditional fire-related incidents.
Last week the Scottish Government minister responsible for the fire service insisted safety won't be compromised if plans to end round-the-clock staffing at Hawick Fire Station are approved today (Monday).
MSP Neil Gray was responding to concerns raised by Borders MSP Rachael Hamilton, who'd asked who's going to take responsibility if something goes wrong?
Last year, Scottish Fire & Rescue Service’s Deputy Assistant Chief Officer (DACO) Andrew Girrity told councillors: “I absolutely recognise the emotive subject and how staff are feeling and their perceptions. I don’t think we will compromise emergency response, we’ll still have an emergency response that matches similar areas with community risk and demand.
“I recognise it will increase response times, absolutely, I’m not going to lie it will increase response times but I don’t agree that we will be putting lives at risk. I don’t agree with that.”
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