New infrastructure, arson among challenges for Fire Service – Benn

…GFS transitioning to adapt, upskill human resource

New challenges have emerged for the Guyana Fire Service (GFS) with the growing oil industry, and authorities are now transitioning to meet these demands which entail highly-skilled expertise and resources.

Home Affairs Minister, Robeson Benn on Friday highlighted some of the challenges for the Fire Service, as the Fire Prevention Board targeted the business community and members of the public on methods to mitigate fires.
According to him, one of the newly-emerged challenges is the new landscape of the oil and gas sector, and fulfilling services both onshore and offshore.
“We have new challenges. I have to go onto the oil and gas development that is upon us and the fact that for that development offshore, we have to have highly-skilled professional Fire Service persons present not only on the vessels offshore but developments onshore…They have to have prior prevention systems and methods involved in those constructions because much of what is stored are chemicals,” Benn underscored.
In the midst of the budding oil sector, Government is also moving to finalise the Wales Development Zone – earmarked to be one of the largest industrial zones in the Caribbean once completed. The requirements to respond to fires in such settings, he added, are at a higher level.
“We have to train up. We have to learn to respond. We have to be courageous enough and we have to be ready at all times.”
In recent time, he pointed to acts of arson which have devastated several public buildings, including the Brickdam Police Complex and schools. Such acts, he added, were due to persons inciting destructive actions. Other existing trials for the Fire Service have persisted, such as the resources needed to combat fires in taller structure.
“I have gone to a series of fires on the city and the coast. Lives were lost, the livelihood and business is shattered and if we have a situation like the last two attempts to catch afire, the wharves, if those things continue to occur and we’re not getting on top of it, the whole question of safety of trade and industry is challenged.”

Transitioning
Like with the other arms of the Disciplined Services, the GFS is also under a transitioning phase in order to better provide services and respond to emergencies. For the Ogle International Airport, a fire system is being procured to reach the standards set out for that respective facility. A ladder-truck will be added to the fleet in order to access high buildings.
“The Fire Service is going through a transition. We say this for many of our Disciplined Services and the services are going through reforms. New awareness being sought, new postures being developed, the awareness of the need to bring in better and newer equipment to refurbish some of the old equipment.”
“Even though we’re transitioning to concrete houses and buildings with natural means of preventing fires, we still have to pay attention to the question of fire prevention. Now that we’re getting into larger buildings going up several stories, we have to pay attention to fire prevention in those buildings,” the Minister relayed.
In preventing fires, businesses and homeowners were asked to identify the systems which should be in place, as well as assess electrical systems in these structures.
Minister Benn urged, “We have to think now and transition in large commercial buildings to fire sprinkler systems, dry and wet riser systems, presence of extinguishers. We have to pay attention in all new business and homes where we had electrical wiring systems which are now overridden by more and more electrical appliances.”
Most importantly, they were asked to enable insurance coverage for buildings in the event of loses.
“Beyond taking care of the physical assets to prevent fires, pay attention to the question of signing on to insurance and for having the necessary inspections done, which the Fire Service is supposed to sign off on for the buildings and reticulation in the building in terms of fire and fire prevention, power and water.” (G12)