GUYANA Environmental, Health and Safety Foundation, a non-governmental organisation (NGO), established two years ago with the aim of also enhancing security locally, has started conducting fire drills at schools in Georgetown.
Its President, Mr. Darwin Bourne said the exercises will only be carried out in schools accredited by the Ministry of Education.
He said, in addition, special emphasis will be placed on those institutions in the hinterland areas.
The first drill, conducted last week at Kingston Community High School, received positive reviews from the management as well as the participants, Browne reported.
He said the purpose of the undertaking is to increase awareness of prevention, which will, in turn, decrease the incidents of fire caused by children.
Browne said, on completion of the programme, participating students of the Prefect Body and the school itself will be awarded certificates.
He said, after they benefit from practical demonstrations, they will be rewarded for their participation.
Alluding to the challenges involved, Browne said it will be difficult to create a safe zone in some of the chosen schools where persons can assemble in the event of an emergency because of the lack of space.
Three more schools are targeted next week, Bladen Hall Multilateral, East Coast Demerara and St. George’s High and Bishop’s High in the city and, on October 29, the Foundation will host a fire safety and risk management seminar at Duke Lodge, in Kingston.
The intensive six hours event is specially tailored to suit persons with basic knowledge of fire safety and involves a systematic approach to review all potential sources of risks, including the presence of dangerous substances, how the spread of smoke and heat can be minimised and the safety of people.