Mayor laments loss of P50-M outlay for new fire gear, trucks

With aging fire trucks battling several fire outbreaks in Cebu City, Mayor Michael Rama said he was frustrated with budget cuts.

A P20-million outlay to buy  firefighting gear and P30 million to improve fire stations was scrapped by the City Council from the city’s 2012 budget, which  the mayor has returned for a review.

“There is a need to set aside a budget for the city’s fire department and yet it was not approved.  That’s the problem with them.  They can’t see the needs, they only see the politics,” said Rama of the legislators.

Four fire trucks conked out after being stretched to their limits putting out the Dec. 23 Gasiano Capital South Mall fire.

“They reached the end of their life span… Nabigay na (They’re worn out),” said SFO1 Eduardo Abellanosa, chief of the motor pool.

The Cebu City Fire Department has 10 fire trucks, most of them over 30 years old, he said.

The four disabled units had “bearings,” engine parts and water pumps that broke down, he explained.

In the pre-Christmas fire that struck the mall, firefighters  were hampered by lack of enough breathing apparatus and ladders long enough to reach the seven-story building.

Mayor Rama said  he would  brief all department staff this week about what parts of the proposed Cebu City 2012 budget were  slashed or not approved by the council.

“In the presence of the media, I will let them them know the reality,” he said.

Meanwhile, Cebu City Administrator Jose Marie Poblete said that although  P50 million was not approved for next year, a P20-million outlay in the current year’s budget is being tapped for the purchase of new fire trucks.

“In fact, the bidding has already been done.  At the soonest time, we can expect to have new fire trucks,” he told Cebu Daily News.

He gave no details, however, about how many units were ordered and how soon they would be available.

Cebu City Fire Marshal Aderson Comar said he submitted a request for fire equipment to the City Council in the second quarter but is still waiting for feedback.

“Sa una ra ta nagkuwang (We lacked equipment a long time ago),” he said.

At present, the fire department has 15 sets of breathing apparatus, one area ladder that can reach a building’s sixth floor and 10 fire trucks.

Comar said they need more, including forcible entry tools such as axes, splitting mauls and hammers. /Rhea Ruth V. Rosell and Edison A. Delos Angeles, Correspondents