MILITARY personnel last night defended the ageing Green Goddesses they are using during the fire strike.

Just 260 military men and women with seven weeks training are standing in for nearly 700 experienced firefighters on Teesside.

From 6pm last night the Green Goddesses were deployed at Army bases across the region.

Union officials claim the ancient vehicles - which are built on a Bedford truck chassis - are not up to the job of protecting the public.

They only have a top speed of 35mph and when they are fully loaded the high centre of gravity makes them potentially unstable - especially when cornering.

Fire officials admit the Green Goddesses do not measure up to the very latest fire appliances but maintain they can hold the line in the event of a serious blaze.

Although the armed forces have been given just seven weeks training, Lt Col David Amos, commanding officer of the Light Dragoons and in charge of the Cleveland operation, is confident his men are up to the job.

"Where there is a serious risk to human life we will use our resources accordingly, because we don't want to see anyone die," said Lt Col Amos.

"It is a bit of a worry but we are there to provide emergency fire cover to save lives.

"The men have been given considerable training, they are extremely competent and I believe they are very much up for it."

999 calls are to be handled by the police, who will liaise with senior fire officers and the Army to ensure troops are deployed to the most serious incidents first.

Chief Superintendent Jeff Evans, of Cleveland Police, said: "I would urge the community to do as much as they can to protect their own property.

"We don't want to watch anyone's house burning down and we will do our best to make sure that doesn't happen but our key priority is to save lives."

Cleveland Brigade executive director Ian Hayton said the Army and RAF cover was "adequate" but no replacement for the existing service.

"They are putting the community at risk and I don't think you can justify that for an industrial conflict," said Mr Hayton.

"It is dismaying but these talks have been going on for months. At this point there is no resolution in sight and there are no plans for any discussion now or next week.

"The military do not provide an alternative fire service - it is emergency rescue cover but tackling fires yourself is not an option, so make sure the risk of a fire occurring in the first place is minimised," said Mr Hayton.

People were discouraged from using chip pans, overloading plug sockets and Mr Hayton urged the public to take extra special care on the roads. The problem is particularly acute on Teesside, home to the biggest concentration of petro-chemical companies in Europe.

Army resources are spread thinly across eight bases and may have to travel up to ten miles to a life-threatening situation.

Cleveland Fire Service can get to most calls in five minutes and are trained to deal with a wide range of emergency rescue scenarios.