By Afedzi Abdullah, GNA
Cape Coast, Nov.19, GNA - To keep up with the standards of international best practices, the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) is proposing the provision of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for every fire fighter
The move, dubbed "One Fire Responder, One Protective Clothing” when becomes operational would help prevent injuries among fire fighters and also protect them from the spread of communicable diseases as a result of sharing protective clothing.
The Acting Chief Fire Officer Mr Ekow Edwin Blankson disclosed this when he interacted with fire officers at the Central Regional Headquarters in Cape Coast as part of his familiarisation tour of the region on Friday.
He said the Service was also aiming at providing each district with one well equipped fire station with modern fire fighting equipment to provide timely response to fire outbreaks.
Mr Blankson cautioned officers against using fire equipment to engage in personal businesses and urged them to desist from charging after rendering services, stressing that their services were free.
According to him, he had observed the worrying trend where some officers use the further weight pump to support the activities of “galamsayers” and sold water meant for fire fighting to individuals and companies which he described as “highly unprofessional”.
Mr Blankson said fire fighting was a noble profession worldwide and charged the officers to exhibit high sense of professionalism in order not to bring the profession into disrepute.
Assistant Chief Fire Officer (ACFO), Fanny Simpson, the Regional Fire Officer said the initiative would go a long way to solve the infrastructural challenges of the Service.
She said in the Central region, for instance, nine of the 17 fire stations were temporarily accommodated while six had no fire stations, meaning that the nearest existing fire stations had no option than to extend their operational boundaries and this inhibits quick response to fire outbreaks to save lives and properties.
She mentioned inadequate personnel, administrative logistics, low retention of safety fund to facilitate safety activities as some of the challenges the regional command faced and appealed for assistance.
Notwithstanding these challenges, she said, the region has stepped-up fire safety education besides other measures being put in place to reduce fire outbreaks.
GNA
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