ECG facilities major cause of fires – GNFS

The Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) has partly blamed the Electricity Company of Ghana for the surge in fire outbreaks for the first-quarter of 2016.

From January to March, alone, 2,469 fire outbreaks were recorded as against 2,036 within the same period in 2015.

In an interview with Class News, Deputy Public Relations Officer (PRO) for the Ghana National Fire Service, Billy Anaglate, said there was a significant shift from domestic electrical fires being the cause of blazes, as 70 of the 145 fires that occurred in Accra within the quarter, involved facilities and properties of the Electricity Company of Ghana.

“We have 70 ECG facilities, which are electric poles, high tension poles, and transformers. With even these 70 that we have, the Greater Accra recorded 31 out of it…then Ashanti region, 21,” he stated.

He added that fire safety was a shared responsibility and called on the public to play their part in keeping fire outbreaks on the low.

“Let us not also lose sight of the fact that fire prevention is a shared responsibility with the Fire Service and the general public,” Mr Anaglate said.

The fire officer added that there was the need for a change in attitudes towards fire safety, as the disposition of the public has contributed to the situation. He said to engender public interest in preventing fires, the Fire Service had “moved from media education to door-to-door education”.

Mr Anaglate denied that fire fighters delay in responding to emergencies. According to him, it takes 30 seconds for fire officers to move from their stations when there is a distress call.

“I want to see the day that the fire personnel will receive a call and delay in moving to respond to the emergency with the type of training that we have. ...We have always responded very swiftly. Within 30 seconds and a maximum of a minute, they should be moving out of the premises,” he stated.