By: Emmanuel Akayeti
The public is been urged to be more cautious against the outbreak of fires during the Christmas.
The Upper East Regional Fire Commander, Assistant Chief Fire Officer One (ACFO 1) Anthony Gyasi Boateng, in an exclusive interview with gbcghanaonline.com in Bolgatanga, indicated that, though the Yuletide is worth celebrating, moderation should be the hallmark.
“Since it is often associated with heavy cooking and roasting using fire, the public should be mindful that fire is a good servant but a bad master.”
Mr. Boateng advised the public, especially market women who cook in the markets, to be vigilant during cooking, and always put off the fire completely after the end of the day’s work, whether a gas cylinder or a coal pot.
“All fires must be attended to carefully as we celebrate Christmas.”
For those who smoke, he said after celebrating, they should not smoke the cigarette to bed, as the ambers are recipes for a fire that can consume the mattress including the smoker, and the whole house. All households’ electrical gadgets are to be switched off before sleeping he added saying fire does not negotiate and all must be safety conscious.
He further advised Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies (MMDAs), and planners, to always demarcate roads in the various towns clearly before construction so as to make access easier in the event of a fire outbreak. He said the congested nature of the cities sometimes leaves fire officers and the tender helpless to rescue lives and properties.
Mr. Boateng however, advised house owners and would-be house owners to be more careful of the kinds of architecture, they choose to design their house for security reasons, adding that, in the event of a fire outbreak, those security designs will become an obstruction to their safety, he advised.
Regarding car owners and drivers alike, he admonished that the tendency to make more trips to earn more money and passengers moving to and fro must be exercised with restraint.
“Car owners should resist putting pressure on drivers to make return strips but rather, employ two drivers per car for long distant journeys especially buses and long cargo trucks”.
