GCMC: Education on LPG use will stop gas explosions

The Ghana Cylinder Manufacturing Company (GCMC) Limited has attributed the causes of recent gas explosions experienced in parts of the country to the lack of public education on the use of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG).

The GCMCL has pledged to intensify awareness through the electronic and print media platforms to educate consumers on the safe use of LPG and the handling of LPG cylinders to avoid fire outbreaks.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the GCMC Limited, Frances Awurabena Asiam revealed this at a training programme for 150 gas filling station attendants at the Ceeta-Kel Hotel in Kumasi on Friday, 28 July 2017.

The programme which is funded by the Council for Technical and Vocational Education (COTVET-SDF) is to upgrade the skills of gas filling station attendants to help them identify faulty cylinders and possibly refer them to the GCMC for refurbishment.

The programme was also to equip the attendants with the knowledge required to educate consumers on safety issues so as to prevent needless explosions and gas fires.

Addressing participants, Mrs. Asiam indicated that the training has become necessary following the number of gas explosions that claimed several lives and injured many others at La, Trade Fair in the Greater Accra, Tamale in the Northern region and Takoradi in the Western region.

“Through research, the GCMC has identified one of the major causes of gas accidents to be lack of public education on the use of LPG”, she said.

The GCMC CEO maintained that her office will continue to collaborate with the Ministry of Energy and other agencies to deepen awareness to reduce health, environmental risk and engender safety in the use of gas.

The attendants were taken through safety training by resource persons from the National Petroleum Authority (NPA) and the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS).

Deputy Public Relations Officer of the GNFS, Prince Billy Anaglate cautioned gas filling station owners, attendants and their customers to adopt safety precautionary measures.

The programme was the fourth edition of training for gas filling station attendants after the company held the first edition in Tema in 2014, the 2nd edition in Kasoa-Budumbura in 2016 and the third edition in Koforidua in 2017.

The state owned GCMC was established in May 14, 1998 to produce LPG Cylinder of all sizes and accessories for domestic and export markets.

The main purpose for its establishment was to promote wider usage of LPG as a substitute for charcoal and firewood to curtail some environmental challenges such as deforestation which is usually caused by of firewood which accounted for over 71 per cent of energy consumed in the domestic sector.