Serving and retired members of Buckinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service travelled to Belgium at the weekend to take part in an Armistice Day parade and service.

Around 25 representatives, including chief fire officer Jason Thelwell, visited the Flemish town of Ypres on Saturday, which they have been doing alongside Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service since 1990.

This year’s service had an extra-special significance as 2017 marks the centenary of the third battle of Ypres, known as the Battle of Passchendaele.

The two fire services attend the Remembrance service in this location as it is where the Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire Light Infantry served during the First World War. 

Bucks Fire spokesman Fraser Pearson said: “The fire and rescue service has a special connection with Ypres, which dates back to 1928. 

“Every day at 8pm, buglers from the local fire service play The Last Post beneath the arches of the Menin Gate, a memorial erected in the decade following the end of World War One to remember the names of nearly 50,000 soldiers who have no known grave.

“Every year the party visits a number of sites and cemeteries around Ypres, Passchendaele and the surrounding Flanders area, as well as attending a social evening at Ypres Fire Station, a wreath-laying ceremony at Tyne Cot cemetery and the Remembrance service at the Menin Gate [where the Last Post has been sounded every day since the Armistice].”

Station commander Tim Parkins, who was one of the members on the trip, said: “It is wonderful to meet the local fire service, whose commitment and dedication have kept this emotional ceremony happening each evening for nearly 90 years. 

“It is also an honour to be able to take part in the parade and service each year.

“The trip gives visitors an insight into the events that occurred in this small area, and we actively help members trace relatives and find battlefield locations where family members may have served.”

The actual attack began on July 31, 1917, near the village of Passchendaele, and lasted three months, costing the lives of some 300,000 allied soldiers, including local men.