Ade Mayhew

Adrian Mayhew has 25 years in the Fire & Rescue Service and has served as an officer in Fire along with completing a six year secondment to National Resilience running an Urban Search and Rescue Team. Whilst serving, he was part of the Chief Fire Officers Association (CFOA) working group that was asked to improve water safety to the rescue service after a firefighter lost his life in an incident in 1996. This led to the development of the National Flood Rescue standards now set by DEFRA Concept of Operations for Flood Rescue through the Flood Rescue National Enhancement Project.

Since then on behalf of CFOA he has been the lead in running water/flood rescue master classes with the colleagues in the USA from North Carolina Emergency Management and Charlotte Fire Department since 2004. He has also been a international speaker at Floodfighters Conferences in the UK, USA and Australia, along with being invited speaker twice at the ILS/WHO World Prevention of Drowning Conference twice in preparedness for water/flood disaster.

Adrian is now the National Operations Manager for the charity Surf Life Saving GB. The charity provides the national and international standards for lifeguards, inshore rescue boat. It also provides training to flood rescue teams to provide 24/7 service for the UK in times of national or regional disaster. Recently Adrian has helped develop Australia’s flood rescue services with both training and national policy.

Adrian has diplomas in search management and technical rescue and has been formally acknowledged for his contribution towards national water safety by the HM Government in 2008. He has recently worked with Portsmouth University on studies of flood responder thermodynamics and energy consumption during hot and cold climates which he has presented findings to both the World Occupational Physical Standards Conference in 2018 and the first International Flood Research Conference in Portsmouth.

Adrian sits as an advisor to the National Water Safety Forum, International Lifesaving Federation Rescue Committee and Civil Protection & Disaster Committee, and finally a committee member of the United Kingdom Search & Rescue Operators Group and Medical Group.