HAMPSHIRE fire chiefs raised more than £2,000 for charity.

Members of the Chief Officers Group cycled 75 miles across the county to raise money for The Fire Fighters Charity which supports service personnel affected by injury, illness or psychological trauma.

The group of ten travelled from Eastleigh to Southampton via the Isle of Wight, Hamble, Warsash, Gosport, Portsmouth, Lymington and Hythe.

The cycle ride also included six ferries and took more than 12 hours.

Andy Bowers, deputy chief fire officer, who organised the challenge, said: The charity is clearly one that is very close to all of our hearts and we all felt a strong commitment to supporting the vital work that they do.“We got tremendous support from our colleagues across the service and beyond with donations and messages of encouragement.“Crews put on countless activities every year to support this cause and I think almost all firefighters can think of somebody who has been helped by this fantastic charity.”

The delegation from Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service included Andy as well as Chief Fire Officer Neil Odin, plus assistant chief fire officers Stew Adamson and Shantha Dickinson.

They were also joined by colleagues Howard Watts, Kevin Evenett, Debbie Worley, Sophie Tustian, Dave Turner, Molly Rowland and Alex McGrory and Police Constable Paul Tustian.

You can still sponsor the COG team on my75miles.everydayhero.com/uk/75-4-75.