Petrojam goes hi-tech with fire truck, ambulance
Published:Wednesday | January 24, 2024 | 12:10 AMChristopher Serju/Senior Gleaner Writer
The firefighting and suppression capabilities of Petrojam Limited, the country’s sole oil refinery and storage company, have been significantly enhanced through yesterday’s official commissioning into service of its automotive foam fire apparatus (fire truck), along with an ambulance at its Marcus Garvey Drive headquarters in downtown Kingston.
Petrojam General Manager Telroy Morgan noted that its mandate of ensuring the country’s energy security is maintained at all times, comes with a significant responsibility.
“Petrojam’s core business involves processing and storing petroleum products and, given the inherent hazardous nature of our operations, it is imperative that our systems are exceptionally robust, to ensure safety and efficiency. Our systems must be over and above the required standards in ensuring that matters of safety are of the utmost importance,” he pointed out.
In the meantime, Daryl Vaz, minister of science, energy, telecommunications and transport, declared that the new acquisitions now give the refinery an added layer of protection against fires.
“Refineries have large quantities of highly combustible material [so] fire and explosions are constant risks that must be managed. Naturally, accidents are often accompanied by injuries, so it is fitting that the new additions to the safety apparatus include an ambulance to respond to emergencies – this unit includes a primary stretcher, CPR (cardiopulmonary resuscitation) machine, an automated external defibrillator device and ventilator device that operates with the oxygen system,” said Vaz. “So it is a very important day for Petrojam and I am happy to be a part of it because safety must be a primary consideration when you are working in a sensitive area such as this.”
Upgrade was long overdue
Vaz recalled that, when fires threatened the refinery in August 2017 and April 2022, in each instance the refinery was quick in its response and extinguished the fires with minimal damage to equipment and near zero disruption in services. This, he explained, was consistent with the fact that refineries are designed to minimise such risks, as a result of the proper specifications and fire prevention measures which are built in.
Leon Jarrett, Petrojam’s manager of safety, environment and quality, said the upgrade was long overdue, given that the previous firefighting unit was acquired in 1982. In 2007 a decision was taken to replace it but, due to financial constraints, this plan was shelved and the unit was instead refurbished, with the procurement process for a much-needed replacement only getting underway in 2017-18.
Sourced out of the United States, the stainless steel truck is a significant upgrade on its predecessor, according to Jarrett, and can discharge 3,000 gallons a of water per minute, surpassing the 1,000-gallon capacity of the previous truck. Its 1,500-gallon chemical foam storage capacity exceeds the 1,000-gallon capacity of the older truck.