Bacton gas bosses to meet councillors

Bosses from the five companies operating at Bacton gas terminal are set to meet with councillors from nearby villages in a bid to improve communication between the plant and its neighbours.

Bosses from the five companies operating at Bacton gas terminal are set to meet with councillors from nearby villages in a bid to improve communication between the plant and its neighbours.

The meeting, which will take place on April 14, has been organised by north Norfolk MP Norman Lamb in response to worries raised after February's fire in the waste water treatment plant at the terminal's Shell facility.

Though the blaze, which happened of February 28 just before 6pm, was quickly extinguished, the incident has caused concern in neighbouring villages with many people saying they want to be kept better informed about goings on at the facility.

Representatives from Bacton, Paston and Knapton parish council's are all expected to attend the meeting along with Mr Lamb.

He said the meeting would look at a range of safety and security issues.

“What we need to do is ensure the local community feels fully informed and are aware of any safety issues that develop at the site,” he said. “We need to make sure that the procedures in the event of an emergency are fully understood by everybody.

“There are also concerns about the telephone warning system and whether we need to upgrade the fire facility. Currently Mundesley has one of the oldest fire engines in the fleet which seems bizarre given that they are covering one of the most important in the county.”

An investigation into the cause of the fire is still ongoing and as yet it is not known when this will be completed.

Shell has said it is unable to speculate as to the cause of the blaze or as to the extent of the damage it cause until the investigation is over.