By Emmanuel Gamson
Fijai (W/R), May 05, GNA – Mr Joseph Nelson, the Western Regional Minister, has described as troubling several incidents of attacks on firefighters in their line of duty.
According to him, firefighters were not just emergency responders but were men and women who risked their lives to safeguard lives and properties from fire destructions, and that any attack on them in the discharge of their mandates was a sabotage on public safety.
He said this when the Western Regional Command of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) organised a durbar to climax this year’s International Firefighters Day (IFFD) celebration.
The event, held at the forecourt of the Regional Fire Headquarters, at Fijai, was on the theme: “An attack on firefighters and equipment is attack on public safety: End Assaults and Protect the Firefighter.”
Mr Nelson stated that the theme for IFFD spoke not only to the safety of firefighters but also to the safety of every citizen in the Western Region and beyond.
He said: “Firefighters are men and women who run towards danger when others are fleeing, and whether it is a raging market fire, an industrial explosion, a road traffic accident, or a domestic emergency, they stand between disaster and survival.
“Yet, it is deeply troubling that these same individuals sometimes face hostility, obstruction, and even physical assault while performing their duties.”
Mr Nelson continued: “Let me state unequivocally that any attack on a firefighter is an attack on all of us, and when a fire tender is stoned, delayed, or denied access, it is not just equipment being damaged, but lives being put at risk.”
He, therefore, called on all the citizenry to cooperate fully with fire officers during emergencies by giving way to fire tenders, avoid crowding incident scenes, and refrain from acts of vandalism or aggression.
Assistant Chief Fire Officer (ACFO) II David Asah Darko, the Western Regional Fire Commander, said the rising cases of verbal and physical assaults on firefighters and the destruction of life-saving equipment were a threat to public safety.
He reiterated the need for the citizenry to commit to a new culture of respect where the public would protect firefighters, exercise restraint, and have empathy for them in times of emergency response.
The IFFD is a day set aside and observed on May 04 every year to honour and celebrate the selfless and dedicated sacrifices and services of firefighters around the world.
It was marked by a minute’s silence for the departed, hoisting of flags and laying of coins in remembrance of fallen heroes.
GNA
Edited by Justina Hilda Paaga/Benjamin Mensah
Reporter: Emmanuel Gamson
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