CABINET on Tuesday granted its no-objection to the procurement of fire-fighting vehicles for the Guyana Fire Service (GFS).On Thursday, Minister of State Joseph Harmon told reporters at a post-cabinet press briefing held at the Ministry of the Presidency, that a contract valued $77, 250, 998 has been awarded for the procurement of two water tenders, four water dousers and two ambulances.
The fire-fighting vehicles will be sourced from Angloco Ltd designs, a company out of the United Kingdom which manufactures and supplies fire-fighting and rescue vehicles and equipment. According to the company, it has customers in over 50 countries world-wide and provides “comprehensive after-sales and spare parts back-up.”
The company said it has been designing and building special purpose fire-fighting and rescue vehicles for over 45 years and has a wealth of experience and capabilities.
“The majority of vehicles are specially designed and custom built for each customer, according to their individual requirements. Angloco proposes an optimum solution for each application, in light of the needs in each case,” the company stated.
Meanwhile, Fire Chief Marlon Gentle told the Government Information Agency (GINA) on Thursday that the ambulances are to be used in the Emergency Medical Service (EMS) which is expected to be launched this month. The EMS is aimed at establishing medical response ambulance services via land, air and water with a response time of 15 minutes maximum. The EMS is a collaborative effort between the Ministries of Public Security and Public Health. Additionally, Gentle said two of the water bowsers are destined for Berbice and one each for the towns of Corriverton and Rose Hall, noting that the Guyana Fire Service has “difficulty in readily accessing water” in the heavily populated parts of these towns. The other vehicles will be dispatched where necessary.