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Guarding Against Fire

  1. Posted on Thursday 28 January 2010 - 11:14
    tamsgogo
    Image of tamsgogo
    The first reporter fire outbreak at the advent of this dry season was the incidence at the Nembe Waterside in the old Port Harcourt Township. A commercial wooden boat with drums of fuel designated for some Riverine communities got aflame due to a careless drop of a lit cigarette butt.

    The loss was colossal by the time the fire was put out.

    More fire incidences had occurred afterwards burning up chains of shanties, stores, property and human beings like the Ogbunabali incidence where a mother of four saved her children with the help of her neighbour but got trapped when she went for some personal effects.

    The four children like other victims bemoaned their fate and to depend on some public benevolence to carry on with life. In all of the fire incidences, the people had started off with confusion and without any fire extinguisher to put out the inferno giving room for a devastating outcome.

    A fire expert, Mr. Japhet Osigwe explained that the reason for such great losses stem from the fact that Nigerians are not safety conscious and dismissed the thought as a distant devil. Mr. Osigwe advised the people to have fire extinguishers in their homes as a precautionary measure against fire outbreak.

    Commissioner for special duties, Mr. Davies Ikanya said while plans were being concluded to embark on a house-to-house fire pprevention campaign, members of the public should put safety first, particularly during the dry season. He urged them to repair faulty electrical suckets and lines, desisit storing petroleum products in and around living houses and adopt behaviours that discourage sudden fire outbreak.

    Mr. Ikanya assured the people of quick response to distress calls. Do not wait to be a victim before considering fire as a enemy.

    Every fire incidence, the commissioner said, is caused by commission or careless act. Stop the fire incidences and save the moments spent lamenting over huge losses.

    26/1/2010

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