Prevention of fires should be a priority

Guyana historically has had a problem with fires and it seems that, that legacy has remained with us because in two consecutive days we had fires on the West Coast Demerara at Stewartville and Meten-Meer- Zorg. In the former instance, a poor family has been left homeless even though the Fire Service station is only a few hundred yards away from where the fire took place. Then the very next day a fire destroyed a business premise at Meten-Meer- Zorg.
The issue about fires is the fact that it destroys lives, property and historical materials that cannot be replaced and the losses are immeasurable, in addition to the human suffering.
In the olden days there was a great fire which destroyed a large section of Georgetown and a great piece of our history, because our city possesses a treasured collection of the old colonial style of architecture, was destroyed. In the turbulent 1960s many historical buildings were also destroyed by the bombings in the city aimed at removing the Dr. Jagan-led government.
These recent fires once again remind us of our fiery history and begs the question of whether we are doing enough and are implementing enough measures to prevent fires from causing destruction to our society.
In fairness to this government, it inherited a fire service which was totally ill-equipped to deal with fire safety and has done tremendous work in improving the service. In fact, the PNC regime had dismissed a former Fire Chief William McDowell, because he had openly criticized the government of the day for its poor support it gave to the Guyana Fire Service and was also suspected of being sympathetic to the slain and revered historian and political leader, Dr Walter Rodney.
Today, under this government fire stations have been established throughout the country which is an unprecedented feat, but it is clear that this is not enough because it is clear that the Guyana Fire Service is not performing at optimal levels.
A typical example of this unpreparedness of the Guyana Fire Service is illustrated by  this statement issued in relation to the Stewartville fire: “Immediately on arrival firefighting operations commenced from the tenders’ water supply to prevent the fire from spreading to nearby buildings which were under direct threat.”
At most times of fires this has been the response of the fire service. Instead of stopping fires, it  has been one to avoid the spreading of fires.
This certainly is not good enough because it is a reactive instead of  a proactive one. The Guyana Fire Service should have been involved in more public awareness and educational campaigns on fire safety because in many instances people are simply unaware of the things that should be done to avert a fire or minimise the chances of a fire. In this regard the Fire Service needs to  engage communities in regular discourses on fire safety.
In poor developing countries like ours, financial and other resources are always a problem. Therefore, commitment and innovation have to be the answers to our many problems. In this regard, it would seem that this approach is seriously lacking.

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