Fire fighters are urging drivers not to park illegally in the fire station driveways, which could cost people their lives.

Last week, because of careless parking, a Wheathampstead fire crew struggled to reach an elderly woman suffering from smoke inhalation in King Edward Place.

On several occasions cars have parked in the driveway outside the fire station on Marford Road, blocking the entrance and exit. The parish council has been trying to draw attention to the problem, and ensured double yellow lines were put in at King Edward Place to discourage reckless parking.

David Johnston, chairman of Wheathampstead Parish Council, said: “It’s an ongoing problem in the village.

“We have been talking to various people about what we can do. We put down double yellow lines but it’s on private property. We have come up with some other ideas but we need to talk to highways and the emergency services.”

According to the parish council. Wheathampstead also faces other, less life-threatening, parking issues.

David said: “The other problem we have with parking is to do with the Tesco store. We had a parking bay put in so the Tesco lorry could load and unload.

“For some reason people assume they can just abuse it and park outside the bay but with their wheels on the pavement, blocking the way to get to the space.

“There’s definitely a problem with traffic converging into the village centre at busy times. There isn’t really a clear solution that doesn’t involve an awful lot of money.”

A spokesperson for Wheathampstead fire station had not replied to the Herts Ad at the time of going to press.