Interior Secretary Benjamin Abalos Jr. (File photo from the Senate Public Relations and Information Bureau)
MANILA, Philippines — Barely seven weeks before New Year’s Eve, when most fire-related incidents happen, recent data disclosed more than a hundred local governments in the country still have no fire stations or firetrucks to respond to emergencies.
During the Senate budget hearing on Thursday for the Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) and its attached agencies, it was revealed that 121 municipalities in the country lack fire stations while 202 municipalities do not have their own firetrucks.
Then again, the situation is being addressed by the DILG and the number has been reduced.
In a statement on Saturday, Interior Secretary Benhur Abalos said 72 new fire stations were constructed since he assumed office in July last year, leaving only 150 local governments without firetrucks and fire stations.
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Of the 150 local governments, six have newly constructed fire stations while 16 local governments have fire stations still under construction. The remaining stations in 128 local governments are recommended for priority construction.
Abalos said the Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP), which is under the DILG, now has a fleet of 2,912 firetruck units of different water-carrying capacities.
Of these, 465 were newly procured firetrucks, each with a 4,000-liter water tank and a 200-liter foam tank that can discharge 3,000 liters per minute at normal pressure.
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Each truck is fully equipped with firefighting equipment, operation tools, and accessories designed using the appropriate fire service standards adaptable to the country’s condition.
The current number of firetrucks, however, is still short of the 4,191 firetrucks the BFP needs to comply with the international standard of one fire truck per 28,000 population.
“The DILG and BFP continue to assist in making our [local governments] better equipped in case of fire incidents and other emergencies that might require immediate assistance from firefighters and first responders,” Abalos said.
“With more fire stations and modern firetrucks, the response time of the firefighters in case of fire will be shortened from the standard seven minutes for every kilometer and about seven minutes per 2.5 kilometers in Metro Manila due to traffic congestion,” he added.