The Gipton firefighters were fondly known as The Commandos. This nickname was given because of the sheer volume of incidents they attended and the skill that comes with that knowledge. Gipton was one of the busiest stations in Britain and at times Europe attending upwards of 4000 shouts a year. Due to this volume it created very competent firefighters, known for their skill and a pride that still is talked about today even though the station has been closed for 2 years. When you mention Gipton to any firefighter their faces light up and the stories start to be told, it was definitely their favourite station to work in.
Mick Maw told us a wonderful story about the time they had a commando’s flag made and they creeped down to headquarters in Leeds and swapped their flag for the new commando flag which was raised during drill the next morning! They worked hard but they played hard too.

gipton commandos