JFB targets households as part of fire prevention strategy
THE Jamaica Fire Brigade (JFB) will be introducing a community safety component to its fire prevention strategy, with special emphasis placed on households.
“We will continue to do public education, inspection and certification, but we will add another component, where we will actively target households,” said Laurie Williams, the assistant commissioner with responsibility for fire prevention.
Williams told JIS News that while in the past “we have always looked at [fire safety] in industries, schools and institutions”, statistics indicate that households were most susceptible to loss of life caused by fires, giving rise to the need to expand the focus to include communities.
As part of the new approach, he said the fire brigade would be promoting the installation of smoke detectors in every household, while educating children about the ‘stop, drop and roll’ method of escaping serious injuries during a fire.
According to Williams, the emphasis on community fire safety was to highlight the fact that fire safety was not only the responsibility of the fire brigade, but required widescale community and multi-agency involvement.
The Brigade has been using Fire Safety Awareness Week, which runs from October 22-28, as the launching pad for this broadened approach to fire prevention. The theme for the week is ‘Preventing Fires – Protecting the Environment’.
As part of the week’s activities, exhibitions have been set up at the Tom Redcam Library, the Half-Way-Tree Fire Station, and the offices of the National Environment and Planning Agency (NEPA), while fire drills and tours of the recently refurbished York Park Fire Station have been organised.
The week, which is aimed at promoting fire safety among the Jamaican populace and showcasing the work of the fire service, will culminate with a ball on Saturday at the Hilton Kingston Hotel.