Central Region records minimal fire outbreaks in first quarter

Cape Coast, June 19, GNA - The Central Region, recorded a drop in fire outbreaks in the first quarter of this year, witnessing 95 incidents as against the 152 during the same period last year.

The Regional Commander of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS,) Assistant Chief Fire Officer, (ACFO) Kwesi Ankonam Quayson who made this known in an interview with Ghana News Agency at the weekend, attributed the reduction in fire disasters to the vigorous public education carried out by his office with other stakeholders.

On bush and industrial fire outbreaks, he said it recorded a significant drop from 95 cases in 2010 to 47 this year, whilst there was no report of industrial fire as against the six recorded last year. Domestic fires had also reduced, yet the few cases reported the first quarter were quite intense, ACFO Quayson noted. He said bush fires had caused a lot of havoc in the Region, thereby aggravating poverty in the rural areas.

To check it, his office will launch a Regional Bush Fire Management Committee in July and also establish a Fire Volunteer Training Programme in all deprived areas in the Region.

ACFO Quayson said the GNFS was training some fire fighting volunteers in the Twifo-Heman- Lower-Denkyira District to be replicated in all districts. It would also team up with the National Road Safety Commission, National Disaster Management Organisation and the Motor Traffic and Transport Unit of the Ghana Police Service as well as traditional rulers in its efforts to control fire outbreaks. He said plans were underway to organise a fire holiday camp for school children to inculcate fire safety measures in them and sensitise them on fire hazards. ACFO Quayson advised property owners to provide fire safety measures t= o their premises while the public should also be safety conscious and take measures to protect themselves against preventable accidents. He entreated the government to provide more logistics in combating fire while corporate institutions should help sustain fire education in the Region.