SIX leading Bosnian fire officers came to Preston this week to see first hand the service on which their own is being modelled.

Their arrival follows last month's visit to Bosnia by members of the Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service, who went over to help restore the country's devastated emergency service.

Then, a team of firefighters -- including station officer Colin Byers and sub officer Andy Wilkinson, from the county training centre, Washington Hall, Euxton -- travelled to Banjaluca.

They delivered a fire engine and other restored equipment that has been removed from service in Lancashire but is desperately needed by the Bosnians, who also received training from the local lads during their nine-day stay.

The team was part of a UK response -- Operation Florian -- to help alleviate suffering in the war-torn territories of the former Yugoslavia. Under the auspices of the UK Fire Service Search and Rescue Team, a total of six fire engines were donated.

Head of this week's delegation is Goran Magas, advisor to the president of Bosnia in Herzegovina, who is a politician and founding member of the BiH Fire Service.

Yesterday, (Wednesday, November 8) the party visited Washington Hall for a tour of the training centre

The previous day, they spent all day at Fire 2000 at G Mex in Manchester.