ST. KATHARINE'S DOCK

Photo: East London Advertiser

Fire boats in action at St. Katharine's Dock, near Tower Bridge, on Sept. 7, 1940, at the start of the Blitz.

WOMEN'S BRIGADE

Photo: Topical Press Agency 

Women's Fire Brigade at hose and ladder drill during First World War in March 1916.

DUCK FIRE

Photo: BBC website

On Sept. 29, 2013, fire erupted on the London Duck Tours craft Cleopatra on the Thames in London. Thirty people were rescued.

PENSION STRIKE

UPDATED

On Sept. 25, 2013, firefighters in England and Wales staged a four-hour strike over pensions. It was  the first nationwide industrial action in the U.K. fire service in a decade. Additional firefighter walkouts continued into December.