Fire safety campaign picks up steam in Hanover
Published:Thursday | October 27, 2022 | 12:09 AMBryan Miller/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
A NUMBER of schools, workplaces, children’s homes, the parish infirmary and communities are to be visited by personnel from the Jamaica Fire Brigade’s (JFB) Hanover Division as part of its Fire Safety Awareness Week exercises.
District officer in charge of the Fire Prevention Section in Hanover, Khalilah Wright-Gray, told The Gleaner that they are seeking to improve awareness during activities scheduled for October 23 to 29, under the theme ‘Preserving the Nation through Life Safety and Prevention’.
“We are really just bringing more awareness about fire safety ... . It is not that we we’ve not done it before, but just placing a little more emphasis at this point in time,” she stated.
Wright-Gray noted that workshops, presentations and impromptu talks have already been held at several institutions inclusive of the parish infirmary, a home for challenged children, also staff and patrons at two service stations.
“The reception has been very good so far. I am very pleased with it as persons have been expressing their appreciation that we are out and engaging them because they needed the reminder,” Wright-Gray noted.
With several children loosing their lives in household fires in Westmoreland recently, and one senior citizen dying in a house fire in Hopewell, Hanover, Wright-Gray said all members of a household should be aware of what should be done in case of an emergency like a house fire.
Safety equipment such as fire extinguishers and smoke alarms should also be utilised, she said, noting that having good fire safety habits is like buying an insurance policy also guarantee peace of mind.
She added that having an escape plan forms part of the message that the fire team is pushing during its visit to communities.
“A lot of persons will have an emergency plan at their workplace. They know what to do in case of an emergency there, but do they have one for their home?” said Wright-Gray as she urged parents to speak with their children about fire safety.
“We emphasise to them that the safest place to be in case of a structural fire is outside, so we want to ensure that the children know how to get outside of the building to safety in case of an emergency,” Wright-Gray stated.
She is hoping that by the end of the week’s activities, all residents within the parish should have know the contact number for Lucea Fire Station, which is 876-956-2220.