Fire Safety Awareness Week – October 25 To 30

The Jamaica Fire Brigade (JFB) is observing Fire Safety Awareness Week from October 25 to 30, under the theme: ‘Learn not to Burn, Fire has Environmental Concerns’.

The activities will commence with a national church service at the Mandeville Church of God of Prophecy, Manchester, on Sunday, October 25, at 10:00 a.m., and continue on Monday, October 26, with an environmental symposium at the Spanish Court Hotel, New Kingston.

Other scheduled engagements include: community walks, training, fire safety drills, information booth displays at fire stations islandwide, and school tours, from October 27 to 29.

Public Relations Officer of the JFB, Acting Senior Deputy Superintendent Emeleo Eubanks, told JIS News that during this period, persons will be selected, trained, and certified to serve as fire watch wardens for their communities.

This engagement, he outlined, will focus on fire safety and prevention, and alternatives to burning materials being discarded.

The communities chosen are: Mavis Bank, Irish Town, and Lawrence Tavern in St. Andrew, which Mr. Ebanks said, based on data provided at the registry of the York Park Fire Station in Kingston, are areas “in need of our attention.”

The week culminates with a closing ceremony at St. William Grant Park, downtown Kingston, on Friday, October 30.

Mr. Ebanks indicated that the JFB is collaborating with several environmental agencies and stakeholders to stage the activities.

These include: the Forestry Department; National Environmental Planning Agency (NEPA); National Solid Waste Management Authority (NSWMA); Rural Agricultural Development Authority (RADA); and Office of Disaster Preparedness and Emergency Management (ODPEM).

He said this year’s theme was chosen “because we want to heighten people’s awareness about the danger fire can have on the environment”, if not properly monitored if and when lit, “and (also) to show them that they don’t have to (resort to burning) things.”

Mr. Ebanks said the JFB anticipates that the week will broaden the nation’s perspective on fire safety awareness, thereby reducing the incidence of deaths and injuries.