A FIRE chief described yesterday how he disbanded a firefighting shift by transferring a number of its members because they had become a "law unto themselves".

Tyne and Wear Chief Fire Officer Richard Bull told an industrial tribunal in Newcastle that Sunderland Central fire station's Green Watch had developed insular and unhealthy attitudes.

The situation came to a head when a member of the neighbouring Grindon fire station accused two members of Green Watch of racial abuse, which culminated in a disciplinary hearing.

Mr Bull said: "In view of the fact that feelings were running so high, it was considered that the health and safety risks posed by these two groups meeting at an emergency were too great to tolerate."

Mr Bull was giving evidence at a tribunal brought by firefighter Michael Coakley, 50, and station officer Marshal Ramshaw, 50, who are claiming unfair dismissal from the authority.

Mr Coakley of Lynthorpe, Ryhope, near Sunderland, claimed he was transferred as punishment a day after defending two colleagues, including Mr Ramshaw, at the disciplinary hearing.

But Mr Bull said that while the racial abuse allegations had been a factor, they had not been the driving force behind his decision.

Instead, it had been based on a long history of concerns over Green Watch's attitudes and its inability to fit in with other units.

In one incident, a woman officer visiting the Green Watch to undertake an equal opportunities training session had to listen to an explicit discussion among the men on how women firefighters might dispose of sanitary protection while on duty.

Mr Bull said a culture change would have been impossible to achieve without the transfer of Mr Coakley, who was a core member with a strong influence over others.

The hearing continues