Basseterre, St. Kitts, April 26, 2018 (SKNIS): The St. Kitts and Nevis Fire and Rescue Services (SKNFRS) is equipping persons in the public and private sector with basic skills in fire-fighting so that they can help to mitigate the potential for a major loss of life and/or property in the event of a fire.
The skills are taught at what is usually a one-day session that is coordinated by the department’s Fire Prevention Team. It features a theoretical session with workers where they cover areas such as how a fire starts, how a fire can spread, and how to extinguish a fire. The type of extinguishing agent that is used is dependent on what started the fire. For instance, an electrical fire will need a fire extinguisher and not water. The employees are then taken to a fire station where they practice what they learned.
Fire Sub-Station Officer, (FSSO) Lesroy Caines, said the key to avoid a disaster is to catch any fire at an early stage. He noted that the training is designed to help employees to extinguish any small blaze such as an office computer that is on fire. However, a report must still be made to the nearest fire station so that officials can conduct an assessment of the scene, ensure that any related hazards are neutralized and the environment is safe.
Hundreds of persons have been trained under this initiative over the years, which is a component of the SKNFRS public education programme. Mr. Caines indicated that companies and/or departments that would like to have their staff exposed to the training should apply in writing to the Chief Fire Officer. Another initiative is the annual Summer Safety Programme now entering its sixteenth year. It caters to children between the ages of five and 12 and focuses on safety practices in the areas of fire, water, disaster, traffic and crime and violence.
“We thought it was best to introduce this programme to try to alleviate fires and deaths caused by children. I want to say that the programme is doing pretty well since its inception; we [have] had a vast decrease in fire incidents caused by children,” FSSO Caines stated on this week’s edition of the radio and television programme “Working for You.”
The annual Summer Safety Programme is held traditionally in July. The date and registration details will be released shortly.
