Issa, (U/W), Dec. 16, GNA – Fire incidents in the Upper West region have gone up to 233 in 2021 compared to 200 in 2020.
Similarly, the number of deaths and estimated cost of property damage have all recorded an increase, according to statistics from the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS).
The 2020/2021 fire incidents statistics showed that 15 people died in 2021 from one in 2020 while casualties also increased from 26 to 41.
The estimated cost of damage and salvage for the same period shot up to more than GH?1.0 million to GH?3.56 million and from GH?1.07 million to GH?3.20 million during the period.
Assistant Chief Fire Officer (ACFO), Mr Abraham Nii Dodoo, the Upper West Regional Fire Officer, presented the fire incidents report for January to November 2020 and 2021 at the launch of the 2021/2022 bushfire prevention campaign and the passing out of fire volunteers at Issa in the Daffiama-Bussie-Issa District of the Upper West Region.
He said domestic fires increased from 65 to 98 while there were two industrial fire cases in 2021.
Vehicular fires, however, decreased from 20 in 2020 to 16 in 2021 while institutional fires were unchanged at 15 cases for each of the years.
Electrical fires increased from 26 in 2020 to 31 in 2021 and commercial fire cases increased from 18 to 21 respectively.
Bushfires, however, decreased from 43 to 32 accordingly while other fire cases increased from 13 to 18 cases in the years under review.
ACFO Dodoo attributed the decrease in bushfires from 43 to 32, representing a 26 per cent reduction, to the intensified education and sensitization by the GNFS and its stakeholders.
He implored the fire volunteers to exhibit discipline and be role models in their communities to guard the remaining vegetation cover.
He said bushfire prevention was a shared responsibility and everyone must be involved to mitigate the devastating effects of the menace in the region.
Mr Simon Kunyangna, the Deputy Project Manager of the European Union Resilience Against Climate Change (EU-REACH) project, noted that bushfires posed major challenges to food security, affecting the production of cereals and tree crops.
He lauded the GNFS for the launch of the anti-bushfire campaign.
He said the German Development Corporation (GIZ), which is implementing the REACH Project, fully supported the initiative as bushfires have dire consequences on the climate and threaten the existence of people.
“We (GIZ-REACH) will like to assure the GNFS and other stakeholders that we will continue to collaborate with them in the quest to fight our common enemy (bushfire),” he said.
The Deputy Project Manager said apart from the support extended to the GNFS in 2019 during the anti-bushfire campaign launch in Wechiau in the Wa West District, this year, the REACH Project was again supporting the 2021 campaign with 200 branded Lacoste ‘T’ Shirts, 200 Wellington boots and 200 cutlasses.
GNA