In an open letter published last week, Chief Fire Officer Tuhill outlined how the West Midlands Fire Service (WMFS) received thousands of 999 calls on 13th August, which was one of the hottest days of the year.
A large fire in Stourbridge destroyed 19 homes and forced dozens to evacuate. Emergency crews from West Midlands Police and West Midlands Ambuance Service worked alongside WMFS to tackle the blazes, while councils, utility companies and Network Rail also helped manage the impact of fires on infrastructure and essential services.
Additionally, the British Red Cross supported affected residents, whilst farmers used their own machinery to create firebreaks and rapid response teams provided food.
Tuhill said that the response would not have been possible without assistance from other organisations.
He said: "No response of this size happens alone. To all of our partners, thank you for standing alongside us."
He also praised the firefighters who battled extreme heat alongside the fires, as well as staff invovled in control, vehicle maintenance, logistics and communications.
He added: "To every firefighter who went from incident to incident, often in extreme heat, often exhausted, and did not stop giving everything they had - thank you. To our fire control colleagues, who kept answering calls, prioritising, coordinating and holding the whole picture together while the pressure never let up - thank you.
"And to everyone behind the scenes: our incident room staff, those maintaining vehicles and equipment, managing welfare and logistics, keeping stations running, supporting families, handling the huge volume of enquiries and information, and simply keeping this organisation functioning while so much of it was focused on the frontline - your part in this was unseen, but just as vital."
Finally, Tuhill also praised local residents and members of the public for staying away from cordoned-off eareas, following emergency advice and bringing water to firefighters.
"This was, for many of you, frightening and heartbreaking, and we are extremely conscious of that," he said. "There will be many others who helped in ways we don’t yet know about - local businesses who kept crews fed and watered, community groups who opened their doors, residents who looked out for neighbours. Countless acts and expressions of kindness."
The full letter can be read here.
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