A MINUTE'S silence was held at Rhyl fire station to commemorate firefighters who have lost their lives on duty.

More than 20 staff of North Wales Fire and Rescue honoured lost colleagues on National Firefighters Memorial Day.

A group of officers and on and off-duty staff convened to pay respects at noon on Friday – despite two crews having been called out to incidents in Wrexham and Deeside immediately before the service.

Ruth Bateman, watch manager of Wrexham fire station and Fire Brigade Union organiser, said: “We did the best we could with who was left.

"We still had plenty of staff assembled and some appliances left for a quite heart-warming memorial.”

Joining the event at Rhyl were members of the National Association of Retired Firefighters; Vale of Clwyd AM Ann Jones; and Parry Owen Davies and Blythe Roberts, respectively the North Wales brigade's secretary and chair.

During the proceedings, a plaque was put up for Holywell firefighter Edwin Goodman, who died an incident in Brynford, near Holywell, in 1987.