HOUSEHOLDERS appear to be heeding the Barbados Fire Service’s calls to be more vigilant, as the overall number of fires are down compared to last year.
Statistics obtained from the Barbados Fire Service showed that from January 1 to September 17 this year, the most significant decline was registered in grass fires – 936 compared to the 1 008 in the corresponding period in 2018. Down too were residential fires (48 compared to 54); motor vehicles (45 compared to 52), as well as commercial buildings fires (12) in contrast to the 17 in that period last year.
But rubbish blazes are up, with 354 compared to the 347 in the 2018 period; while there have been 14 derelict house fires this year compared to ten up to September 2018.
“We had a lot of grass fires that skyrocketed at the beginning of the year, which would be the dry season, but then they petered off. In 2018, the major figures would have been grass [but] this year for the same period . . . grass fires are down in a significant way,” Chief Fire Officer Errol Maynard told the NATION.
(GBM)
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