Arcadia Fire Engine for Calais
Donation protected
Help us build a fire engine for Calais
The humanitarian crisis in the Calais refugee camp continues to spiral despite the best efforts of volunteers.
When some of our crew drove down to asses the situation and see if lives were at risk, they immediately pinpointed a way in which Arcadia’s particular areas of knowledge might be of use. Within hours, a gigantic and all too familiar sound was heard –a gas explosion. Running toward the first plumes of smoke, a second gas bottle blew, shooting a terrifying fireball into the sky.
After years of harnessing fireballs safely, the crew instantly knew what was at stake. People were scrambling with buckets to water points that dribbled slowly, and the scale of the emergency magnified. The fire brigade were called, but they took over 45 minutes to arrive the few kilometeres from the station. The growing inferno was left to those desperate to save their families and their shelters with no equipment to fight the blaze.
If there’s one thing we know a bit about, it's handling gas and fire safely. Profoundly marked by the institutional inaction and the utter panic in the camp, the crew are not only going back to fully inspect gas appliances and gas lines, but have come up with a project that will hopefully help people to protect themselves from fires like this. There are on average 3 a month.
With your support we are going to build a fire engine that is suitable for use in the challenging conditions in Calais. We will also train volunteers to be able to run and maintain it. Arcadia will use crew, workshop space, skills and equipment to build the engine, and we’re putting out a shout to all of our friends, family and supporters to get involved and help with funding it.
Whatever your views on the politics and economics of the refugee crisis, this is about human beings and our only goal is to stop people from dying.
Arcadia Spectacular
www.arcadiaspectacular.com
The humanitarian crisis in the Calais refugee camp continues to spiral despite the best efforts of volunteers.
When some of our crew drove down to asses the situation and see if lives were at risk, they immediately pinpointed a way in which Arcadia’s particular areas of knowledge might be of use. Within hours, a gigantic and all too familiar sound was heard –a gas explosion. Running toward the first plumes of smoke, a second gas bottle blew, shooting a terrifying fireball into the sky.
After years of harnessing fireballs safely, the crew instantly knew what was at stake. People were scrambling with buckets to water points that dribbled slowly, and the scale of the emergency magnified. The fire brigade were called, but they took over 45 minutes to arrive the few kilometeres from the station. The growing inferno was left to those desperate to save their families and their shelters with no equipment to fight the blaze.
If there’s one thing we know a bit about, it's handling gas and fire safely. Profoundly marked by the institutional inaction and the utter panic in the camp, the crew are not only going back to fully inspect gas appliances and gas lines, but have come up with a project that will hopefully help people to protect themselves from fires like this. There are on average 3 a month.
With your support we are going to build a fire engine that is suitable for use in the challenging conditions in Calais. We will also train volunteers to be able to run and maintain it. Arcadia will use crew, workshop space, skills and equipment to build the engine, and we’re putting out a shout to all of our friends, family and supporters to get involved and help with funding it.
Whatever your views on the politics and economics of the refugee crisis, this is about human beings and our only goal is to stop people from dying.
Arcadia Spectacular
www.arcadiaspectacular.com
Organizer
Robin Pob Adlem
Organizer
