FIREFIGHTER Steve Bonsor has been presented with a long service and good conduct medal to mark two decades with London Fire Brigade. Steve, 50, is based at Barking Fire Station, where he is part of the brigade s command support team. He started is career

FIREFIGHTER Steve Bonsor has been presented with a long service and good conduct medal to mark two decades with London Fire Brigade.

Steve, 50, is based at Barking Fire Station, where he is part of the brigade's command support team.

He started is career as a firefighter at Stratford in 1988, before going on to serve at a number of other stations in east London including Ilford, Whitechapel and Chingford.

Between 1998 and 2008 Steve was based at brigade headquarters, where he trained senior officers in incident management.

He said: "There have been a lot of changes since I joined and the rate of change seems to be increasing. The job of firefighter has become more technical and complex with a lot of new, better equipment and procedures in place.

"The increasing emphasis on fire prevention that there is now, talking to people in their homes about the risk of fire and fitting smoke alarms, has made the firefighter's life different but no less challenging."

Along with the many highlights, such as travelling the UK and meeting colleagues from other fire and rescue services, he has also known sad times with the brigade, losing two colleagues at an incident in 1991.

Steve said: "I would recommend a career in the brigade to anyone with a sense of adventure and a desire to help others. I've seen and experienced many things in my career that most people would never get the opportunity to and I've made some lifelong friends.

"The fire brigade is like being part of an extended family. I've worked with some remarkable, talented and entertaining people over the years. It has been a privilege to serve the people of London and I am proud to think that in some way I have helped to make London a safer place.