The FBU has attacked the plan

The government is currently considering the merger of call centres into wider, "more efficient" regional units.

Under the plan, fire services in Dorset, Wiltshire, Gloucestershire, Avon, Somerset, Devon and Cornwall will be run from one control room.

The Fire Brigades Union (FBU) says the idea is ill-conceived and dangerous.

Local knowledge is most important at the fire station level Kevin Pearson Avon Fire Brigade

Tam MacFarlane, from the FBU, told the BBC: "People are calling in distress in a potentially life-threatening situation.

"They are going to use local reference points: how can staff based hundreds of miles away know where callers are or what they face?"

Proponents of the scheme argue that local knowledge would be provided by new technology, and that a regional centre would give "greater resilience" for brigades when dealing with large-scale emergencies.

Chief Fire Officer Kevin Pearson, from Avon Fire Brigade, added: "Local knowledge is most important at the fire station level.

"A lot of people in local control rooms don't have this knowledge. The technology available nowadays means this is not as significant as it was. "

The region's fire services are currently bidding to host the new control room. The government has said if they cannot agree, it will make the decision on the location.

The recently published Fire and Rescue Service Bill would give the government the necessary powers to undertake this regional overhaul.