Firefighters help brave girl (6) in fight against rare cancer

The eight retained firefighters hope to raise £1,500 for the family of six-year-old Tia Taggart, who suffers from Ewing’s sarcoma, a rare form of bone cancer.

Tia, who attends St John the Baptist RC Primary School, Padiham, has had six rounds of chemotherapy, which has resulted in hair loss, sore joints and blisters in her throat.

Tia joined firefighters at their charity car wash day at Padiham Fire Station on Saturday to help them raise £370 for her appeal.

Christian Lopez, one of the firefighters, said: “She was full of smiles and chatted with all of us for about an hour, helping to hose down the cars.

“We had a lot of people at the car wash despite the wet weather, people even turned up on foot and from out of town to donate money without even having their cars washed, it was inspiring.

“We want to do our bit to make life a bit easier for Tia’s family.

“Tia goes to school with the children of one of our firefighters, and we know all about the challenges she is facing and how brave she is.

“We have decided to take turns to walk on a treadmill over a 24-hour period to raise money for Tia’s family.

“That would be hard enough in itself but we have decided to do it in full kit including breathing apparatus.”

The challenge will take place at Padiham Tesco, starting at noon on Friday, March 11th.

Christian added: “Tia is only halfway through her treatment and the next stage will be more aggressive, magnifying her side-effects and involving a long hospital stay.

“We want to raise enough to help Tia and her family with everyday requirements, ongoing care and rehabilitation.”

To support the challenge, visit www.crowdfunding.justgiving.com/tia-taggart.