RIOTERS who smashed up six Merseyside fire engines put them out of action for days and caused £12,000 of damage.
Thugs involved in the civil unrest threw bricks at brave crews who were fighting fires on the second night of the disturbances, on August 9, leaving windscreens cracked.
Two officers who came under fire on Smithdown Road and Lodge Lane were cut by flying glass but stayed on duty.
The details of Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service’s response to last month’s riots emerged at a Fire Authority meeting yesterday.
Chief Fire Officer Dan Stephens said that scenes of firefighters watching burning buildings, as seen in other cities, did not happen in Liverpool because of the “pragmatic” views of his officers.
On the first night of rioting, which centred mostly on Wavertree and Toxteth, firefighters dealt with 11 car fires, nine secondary fires (such as wheelie bins) and three property fires.
On the second night, that shot up to 101 fires, including 18 car fires and 11 properties.
Mr Stephens, who is only in his first month as chief fire officer, said: “It’s fair to say that in Liverpool, Birkenhead and Bootle, what we did not see was the sort of thing you saw on TV in London and Manchester, where we had buildings burning down and police and firefighters looking on.
