Fire Service to focus heavily on training, public education

The Guyana Fire Service (GFS) will be placing greater emphasis on training for officers and increased public education, as it seeks to better the level of performance in times of emergencies.
This was announced during the Annual Officers’ Conference on Monday, held under the theme: “Enhancing and Modernising the Guyana Fire Service through Training, Re-Tooling, And Public Education.”
The conference was attended by Chief of Staff of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF), Brigadier Godfrey Bess; Commissioner of Police, Clifton Hicken; Director of Prisons, Nicklon Elliott; Head of the Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU), James Singh; Chief Fire Officer, Gregory Wickham and senior officers of the Fire Service.
During his opening remarks, CFO Wickham highlighted that, in keeping with the theme, the administration has placed heavy emphasis on training.
He mentioned that over 200 ranks have recently received training in various areas, including middle management, heavy-duty training, and defensive driving courses, to name a few.
Wickham further noted that there is a great need for public education, which the Fire Service is working assiduously to satisfy.
He said the deliberations coming out of the two-day conference are expected to provide the administration with a guide towards achieving the ten-point improvement plan, which will ensure that the Guyana Fire Service is enhanced and strategically placed in a position where it can protect the nation against all loss and destruction by fire.
Meanwhile, Home Affairs Minister Robeson Benn outlined that it is necessary to recognise the current gaps within the service in order to remedy them.
Benn also emphasised the expansion of the service in order to address the national challenge of protecting against fire, loss of life, destruction, and injuries related to fire. The administration was encouraged to utilise its resources in the most effective way possible and to be prepared for the vast developments in infrastructure and the overall country as the oil and gas sector continues to flourish.
The objectives of the conference fall along the line of the ten-point improvement plan which are to modernise new and existing fire stations to create an enabling environment; implement fire safety codes; expand emergency medical services; establishing a new fire station alerting system and new Computer Aided Dispatching (CAD) System; update policies and standard operating procedures; improve the current training centre; facilitate external communication and public education; embarking on a station remodel for firefighter health and safety; and establish promotions, development and training opportunities.
During the two-day conference, senior officers will benefit from several presentations that will aid in the enhancement of the Guyana Fire Service.