A sharp increase in fires this year has prompted a call for Barbadians to pay more attention to prevention.
In his Christmas message, Acting Chief Fire Officer Henderson Patrick revealed there were 2 192 fires in various categories this year, compared with 1 798, which were just ten more than in the previous year.
“The efforts of the [Barbados Fire Service] during the year at maintaining fire safety and prevention awareness have been relentless. Community outreach and commercial business engagement was steadfast. Yet this has not translated into the reduction in fire calls among the major categories for the year so far,” he lamented.
The major increase had been in grass fires, which jumped from 755 last year to 1 033. Vehicle fires also rose to 63 from 41, derelict houses from two to 12, and buildings tripled to 24 over the same period. Sugar cane fires also rose from 37 to 60. (PR/SAT)
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