A historian has been appointed to catalogue pictures and information about the County Durham and Darlington fire brigade.

Craig Godwin, of Consett, has converted the loft area of his house into a storage area for memorabilia about the brigade. He has now been ask-ed to take charge of the bri-gade's own pictures.

A brigade spokesman said: "The history of the brigade, going back to its inception more than 50 years ago, is to a large extent recorded on several thousand negatives of all shapes and sizes, including very early glass ones.

"Some of the negative packets have now fallen into disrepair through a lack of adequate preservation.

"Over the years, various individuals have made the effort to preserve our history. However, as they retire and move on the lack of continuity and interest often results in these valuable negatives coming under threat once again.

"The solution is to appoint someone who is not necessarily employed by the brigade, but has an interest in preserving our history."

Mr Godwin will voluntarily record information about the brigade, index and preserve the photos, and make them available to those who want to view them.