The Duchess of Cornwall told Swindon firefighters everyone will have to keep their fingers crossed the country does not experience a second wave of coronavirus.
Camilla visited the Drove Road fire station today, meeting firefighters, Great Western Hospital staff and paramedics during her first solo public event since lockdown began in March.
Towards the end of her visit, the duchess told the group: "Just before I go, I'd like to thank you for everything you've done throughout this pandemic - I don't know, we just have to keep our fingers crossed that we don't see the second wave.
"But I think it's lovely to see how everybody's working together."
Health and emergency service workers had gathered at the fire station to meet the duchess and Ben Ansell, chief fire officer of Dorset and Wiltshire Fire and Rescue Service, introduced her to local firefighters.
Many of the county’s firefighters have been driving ambulances during the coronavirus pandemic in order to ease pressure on South Western Ambulance Service. Of 3,000 shouts attended by the ambulance service, 716 have been attended by an ambulance driven by a DWFRS firefighter.
Camilla spoke to Swindon’s station manager Sam Legg-Bagg and praised the commitment of his crews, telling him: "We couldn't have done without you, thank you very much."
Crews have been responding to call-outs throughout the pandemic, but firefighters trained in driving emergency vehicles and first aid have been relieving the pressure on paramedics by driving ambulances alongside a clinician.
During the visit, which was staged in the open air at the back of the fire station surrounded by engines, the duchess praised fire crews who changed roles to support paramedics, saying: "It's one of these things, everybody has pulled together, which is so important - I take my hat off to you all."
Chief fire officer Ben Ansell said it had been a “huge honour” to invite the duchess to Swindon.
“I extended the invitation to her as we are very proud of the work we have done with partners across our service area during the coronavirus pandemic,” he said.
“This was a great opportunity for us to publicly acknowledge the many people, both within the service and outside, who contribute to keeping the communities of Dorset and Wiltshire safe.”
Kevin McNamara, chief executive at Great Western Hospital NHS Trust, told the Adver: "It was a great opportunity to share the work that staff and volunteers right across the Trust have been doing since the very early days of the pandemic. It was good to have Dr Anthony Kerry, Chest Physician and Maxine Buyanga, ICU Matron who have been right at the front line throughout describe the work they and their teams have been doing and give a sense of where next for the Trust given this is still very much a live issue."
The duchess also visited Swindon Borough Council's Live Well hub, meeting those who have worked on the council's response to the virus.
The Duchess of Cornwall at Swindon fire station All pictures: Eddie Mulholland/The Daily Telegraph/PA Wire
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