West Sussex trainee firefighters row over 59 miles in aid of charity

The ten new recruits rowed 96,000 metres whilst wearing full fire kit, which is almost the equivalent of travelling between the English Channel and France three times.

The challenge paid honour to Queen Elizabeth II’s work as patron of The Fire Fighters Charity for over six decades with the trainee firefighters rowing 1,000 metres for every year of her life.

A total of £3,362.70 was raised for The Fire Fighters Charity and Tommy’s so far, with the recruits beating their initial target by 68%. However, the Gofundme page will remain open until December 16.

Trainee firefighter William Scott said: “The row itself was hard work and we were all feeling it the next day. However, it was fantastic to receive such great support from the local community during the row with members of the public coming along to cheers us on.

“The generosity of all those that donated has shocked us, even with the current cost of living and run up to Christmas, people still showed up to support two amazing charities which has been fantastic.

“A massive thank you also goes to Tesco Extra in Horley for allowing us to use their venue and providing us with energising drinks throughout the challenge.’

The fundraiser comes as the recruits mark their 11th week into their 13-week initial training course, which will see them deployed to a number of different stations around the county upon completion on December 15.

See more: Crawley man achieves Community Partnership Award for 27 years of service to West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service, Crawley snowfall 2022: Here are 11 pictures of the snow from across the town, IN PICTURES: Here are 7 reasons why Crawley is the ‘eighth-happiest place to live in Sussex’

You can donate here: https://www.gofundme.com/f/the-queens-row