BFP engages public in fire prevention

The Bureau of Fire Protection kicked off the annual Fire Prevention Month yesterday by engaging stakeholders in fire safety and boosting its capability to fire fire.

Members of the media were briefed on basic first aid, rescue and safety while covering disasters and calamity.

Six Central Visayas cities were also given Austrian-made Rosenbauer TLF 4000 firetrucks. The modern firetruck is designed to respond to fire incidents in highly urbanized areas.

It can discharge a high volume of 2,400 liters of water per minute. The water cannon can spout water up to 62 meters in the air or the height of an eight-storey building.

Cebu, Mandaue, Lapu-Lapu, Talisay cities inCebu, and Tanjay and Bayawan cities in Negros Oriental were among the recipients of the modern firetrucks which cost P18 million each.

Ethel Margaha, regional public information officer of Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) said the media should know basic first aid as part of their job in covering stories of calamities and disasters.

“Journalists sometimes are the first responders when an accident, disaster or calamity occurs. Basin inig-abot ninyo sa area, there is somebody who needs your help for his life to be extended, mas maayo kahibalo mo og first aid. And while covering you should also know how to secure your safety,” Margaha said.

(There will be emergency situations that journalists are the first responders… so it would be important that you know basic first aid.)

BFP rescuer, FO1 Romeo Romeo taught some media personality on how to do a first aid such as Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR), a lifesaving technique useful in many emergencies, including heart attack or near drowning, in which someone’s breathing or heartbeat has stopped.

A drill rescuing somebody trapped at the higher part of the building was also done.

Yesterday’s Fire Prevention Week kick off started with a two-kilometer walk ‘for a fire-free and fire-safe nation’ at 4 am, followed by Mass, basic first aid briefing for journalists and fire fighting drill in BFP-7 office at N. Bacalso Street.

Sr. Supt. Ma. Luisa Hadjula said among the features of this month’s activity will be on the firetruck visibility, and fire safety awareness in the barangays, and schools.

“Most of the fire incidents occur during hot season, kasi of electric overloading.. Mainit kasi, so bumibili ng dagdag appliances to ease the hotness then konti lang ang outlet, ginagamit lang mga extension wire mag octopus wiring na at mag-ooverload minsan diyan nagsisimula ang sunog,” Hadjula explained.

Hadjula is asking all household members to participate ‘barangay ugnayan’ where some of the fire trucks educate people in a certain barangay on how to avoid fire incidents.

So far, this year, the BFP recorded 86 fire incidents in Central Visayas, 46 of this happened in Metro Cebu and Cebu province.

Last year, Metro Cebu and the province accounted for 65.5 percent of fire incident with 377 reported out of the 603 throughout Region 7 that also covers Bohol, Negros Oriental and Siquijor provinces.