30/12/2025
Yesterday we shared the heartbreaking story of the unimaginable Boxing Day tragedy in Gloucestershire.
Boxing Day served as a brutal reminder that emergencies do not pause for celebrations.
In the early hours of the morning, crews from South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust, alongside fire and police colleagues, were called to a fully developed house fire in Stroud. Despite the immense efforts of all services, a mother and her two young children tragically lost their lives.
All emergency service crews worked in exceptionally dangerous conditions, doing absolutely everything they could, while facing a scene no family and no responder should ever have to endure.
We want to remind the responding ambulance crews who witnessed this unimaginable tragedy unfold that support is there if you need it. This is the most rewarding job in the world, but it also puts us face to face with the very worst moments imaginable.
However you take your support, whether that’s a cup of tea and a quiet chat with crewmates, shedding a tear, or holding each other a little tighter, it matters. There is no shame in needing help.
Please reach out to your in-service support networks or TASC The Ambulance Staff Charity, if you need to. You are not alone, and you never have to carry it all by yourself.
