A planned fire exercise will take place on the Chester Rows next month.

The exercise, conducted by Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service, will start at 10am on Thursday 3 April.

With controlled smoke pellets being set off on Bridge Street Row, the alarm system will alert CCTV cameras that will lead to a 999 call. 

The CCTV system will be able to confirm if there is a visible fire. 

The Fire and Rescue service will send an appliance to the scene to locate the source of the reported smoke.

Members of the public and businesses will not need to report the smoke to the emergency services, there will be signs in place confirming this is an exercise.

The exercise is planned to be completed by 10.30am; there will be no road closures during the exercise.

Before the exercise starts there will be a presentation at Chester Fire Station with representatives from NW heritage fire group, Historic England and the Council, looking at the Fire Action Plan since 2019. 

Councillor Louise Gittins, Leader of Cheshire West and Chester Council, said: "The risk of fire on the Chester Rows is taken very seriously and a lot of work has taken place over the years.

"Protecting against fire includes many elements including waste storage, the Rows consent scheme, the new aspirating system, inspections, reporting and reducing vacancies on the Rows.

"This new system is designed to detect smoke and raise an early alarm for the emergency services.

"The test will be checking for both early detection and reducing the likelihood of false alarms."

Steve McCormick, head of prevention and protection at Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service, said: "We have worked closely with the council and our project partners to test the system thoroughly - improving early detection of signs of fire on the Rows, rapid response and reducing false alarms for our emergency service.

"This is a fantastic example of public services working together to protect an irreplaceable landmark for future generations to enjoy."

The planned exercise follows the successful upgrading of the Chester's Rows fire protection, to provide an early warning in the event of a fire. 

The work began in December 2023 to upgrade the necessary equipment in the existing fire alarm panel enclosures.

The second phase installed new sampling pipework, which runs high-level along the Rows with the majority being above the elevated stallboards.

The work was carried out to reduce disruption to residents, businesses and shoppers.

The project was co-funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.