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THE capabilities and the resources available to the Guyana Fire Service (GFS) should amaze anyone, Station Officer Kevin Adcock of the United Kingdom Fire and Rescue Service said. In his opinion, he told the Guyana Chronicle in an interview, that the firefighting capacity here is very unique, given the conditions with which firefighters are faced to execute their duties.
Adcock said Guyana has some of the most difficult firefighting circumstances in the world, among which are strong winds from the Atlantic, dry buildings, inadequate water supply and, recently, the erection of towering buildings.
The British visitor commended his local counterparts for the efforts they make with the little resources they have, but he also mentioned the modernisation process underway, for which a name change is proposed.
Adcock said the model is being adapted around the world and, should Guyana fail to embrace it, would mean a step backwards.
He had been in the country, recently, as part of an exchange programme, which has been ongoing for two years, between the British Fire and Rescue Service and the GFS. The aim of it is to provide training for local firefighters and, very soon, they will be allowed to travel to the UK through the initiative.
According to him, the proposal for change often involves a special group of men and women offering an emergency service which is second to none in the world.
He said that the strategy Guyana seeks to implement is well established worldwide. In some places, the firefighters provide a good quality, competent standard of emergency cover from the medical, fire and rescue standpoints.
It is a scenario that is being explored here and Guyana needs to get with the times and develop since the demands of firefighting have changed dramatically over the last eight to ten years, Adcock noted.
He warned that any fire service which fails to adapt to modernisation will be left behind and Guyana is taking the step in the right direction for modernising and moving forward Adcock reiterated.
Adcock said Guyana has some of the most difficult firefighting circumstances in the world, among which are strong winds from the Atlantic, dry buildings, inadequate water supply and, recently, the erection of towering buildings.
The British visitor commended his local counterparts for the efforts they make with the little resources they have, but he also mentioned the modernisation process underway, for which a name change is proposed.
Adcock said the model is being adapted around the world and, should Guyana fail to embrace it, would mean a step backwards.
He had been in the country, recently, as part of an exchange programme, which has been ongoing for two years, between the British Fire and Rescue Service and the GFS. The aim of it is to provide training for local firefighters and, very soon, they will be allowed to travel to the UK through the initiative.
According to him, the proposal for change often involves a special group of men and women offering an emergency service which is second to none in the world.
He said that the strategy Guyana seeks to implement is well established worldwide. In some places, the firefighters provide a good quality, competent standard of emergency cover from the medical, fire and rescue standpoints.
It is a scenario that is being explored here and Guyana needs to get with the times and develop since the demands of firefighting have changed dramatically over the last eight to ten years, Adcock noted.
He warned that any fire service which fails to adapt to modernisation will be left behind and Guyana is taking the step in the right direction for modernising and moving forward Adcock reiterated.
