The Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) in Koforidua has been without a fire tender vehicle for the past two years.
The only fire tender vehicle serving the Eastern Regional capital Koforidua and its environs broke down two years ago but have not been repaired due to lack of funds.
According to management, efforts made to get Ghc20,000 to repair and service the broken down vehicle have not been successful.
The situation has increased the risk vulnerability of lives and properties in the Regional capital as the fighting of a major fire outbreak remains a mirage.
The worrying situation compelled management of the Koforidua Fire Station to improvise with an old rickety fire tender but it malfunctions and frequently breaks down.
New Juaben Municipal Fire Officer Divisional Officer (DOIIl) – Ayitey Brown Oquaye told Mybrytfmonline.com that, “the fire tender has grounded about two years now and to hold ourselves readiness for emergencies the management brought us another tender to serve as an alternative tender, the only difficulty confronting the service is that that tender is not as strong as the old one the new one that we use to operate. we have made a lot of proactive efforts contacting certain institutions to come to our aid at least we about 20,000 plus to fix that tender.
He continued ” I am told that the injectors and other components are defective that is the situation but we’ve written to other cooperate bodies to come to our aid but unfortunately the help is not forthcoming but notwithstanding the last time when the parliamentary candidate Hon. Okyere Baafi when he promised he will do it for us and we have done the necessary arrangements we have written to him, we have given the assembly copy, we have given our regional commander copy so we waiting for that help to come”
He said the Koforidua Fire station ” is one of the sensitive fire stations looking at the proximity where it is sited and also I will be very grateful that cooperate bodies, institutions, banks must see the service as such and they should come to our aid”.
On Tuesday morning, a fire consumed at least three shops in Koforidua. The scene of the incident was about 5 minutes’ drive from the Koforidua Fire station however firefighters from the station could not respond quickly due to the unavailability of an effective fire tender to extinguish the fire. It took the intervention of a fire tender from the regional headquarters which arrived 40 minutes into the incident.
The blaze had already consumed properties worth millions of cedis before doused by the fire service personnel.
Residents in Koforidua and the victims directed their anger on the Fire service for the slow response to the fire outbreak despite its proximity to the scene of the fire incident.
However, DO III Ayitey Brown Oquaye, said even though the fire station is constraint logistically, the call came late, meanwhile, they have to fall on the Regional Headquarters for intervention since they do not have a functional fire tender.
The Municipal Fire Officer appealed to corporate institutions in Koforidua to support the fire station to repair the broken down fire tender vehicle to help save lives and properties.
Source: Mybrytfmonline.com/Obed Ansah
