Only readers of a certain age will recall Welephant - but those who met him will never forget.

He was the red elephant firefighter - who toured schools in Bolton - telling youngsters of the dangers of fireworks.

This picture from our archives shows the fire safety mascot on a visit to Tonge Moor County Primary School in 1985.

Welephant was created for the Greater Manchester Fire Service to promote awareness of the dangers of fire to the local school children.

As his popularity soared in the 1980s, he went national and was used by fire services across the UK to promote fire safety.

The Bolton News:

He went on to become the mascot for the National Fire Safety Charity for Children - but fell out of favour with youngsters as Fireman Sam came to the fore.

He has since been adopted as a mascot by national charity the Children's Burns Trust.

Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service also continue to use a modern version of the character (see above).

Welephant has also been spotted in and around Norfolk and even has his own Facebook page thanks to the Norfolk Fire Museum.

 

 

What are your memories of Welephant? Did he visit your school? Tell us in the comments below.