Fire Hydrants: Problems and Solutions

-
Fire safety and prevention should be everyone’s concern, regardless of the structure of your house or socio-economic status. Last week, a news item on television showed how challenging the job of a firefighter is in the absence of working fire hydrants across Jamaica. A fire hydrant is a connection point by which firefighters can tap into a water supply. In the news item, fire fighters, upon the arrival of the scene of the fire, discovered that the fire hydrant was not in working condition. As a result, their work was severely hampered and house burnt out completely. One can only wonder what if the fire hydrant was working.
We need to ask whose responsibility it is for the maintenance of fire hydrants. We need to develop some standards for the safeguarding of the country’s fire hydrants. Fire hydrants can be affected by the regular wear and tear, vandalism and mechanical function. However, years ago, our fire hydrants were regularly serviced which included painting and the greasing of caps.
We clearly need to revisit the issue of fire hydrants as it relates to fire safety and prevention. In the same way in which we have employed environmental wardens; why not employ fire hydrants wardens to ensure the maintenance of these essential elements of fire safety and protection? There is clearly a need for a public education campaign regarding the care and protection of the nation's fire hydrants.  Additionally, more fire hydrants are required throughout the country, this should become a requirement especially in newly constructed housing schemes.
The Jamaica Fire Brigade tagline speaks to saving lives and protecting property, however, if there are not working fire hydrants their mandate will be difficult to achieve.  In some jurisdictions for example, in Ireland and the United Kingdom, fire hydrants are located in the ground. The government needs to explore all options regarding having fire hydrants which work. We need to find the resources to ensure this. A country will not attract investments if there is not a robust fire prevention and safety apparatus in place. 
#fire #firehydrants #Jamaica
Wayne Campbell
waykam@yahoo.com
@WayneCamo



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Insecticides, Air Travel And Safety

-
Image
We are not insects, we are human beings. To travel by air is a privilege. Air travel is a costly adventure as well.   Those of us who have been fortunate to travel oftentimes experience some amount of excitement leading up to that moment. This heightened sense of emotion happens to almost all of us irrespective of whether we are a frequent flyer or a first timer. This buzz never goes away regardless of whether you travel economy or first class. However, for some folks there is a sense of nervousness during travel. There are numerous lessons we can learn whenever we travel. For example, our outlook on life is often altered due to the interaction with other peoples and cultures. Once the airplane takes off and you begin to ascend into the clouds, sometimes of altitude unbelievable to those without this experience, one can feel like someone who is imprisoned until your flight lands and you disembark. It is usually at those altitudes that the airline crew informs you that they are goin...
Read more

Vessels of Honour: Celestial Treasures

-
Image
“Create in me a clean heart, O God; and renew a right spirit within me.”- Psalm 51:10. Many of us have a skewed understanding of God our creator. In many instances we believe or are led to believe that in order to be used by God we must be pure and sinless. This tainted view undoubtedly also impacts our relationships we have with God. Having such a distorted view of God and what God demands from us oftentimes lead us into disobedience. The same is true concerning the weight of condemnation. It is for this reason why it is critical for us to spend time in the Word of God which is the Bible. We all need to know God for ourselves. We often make excuses to study the Bible, yet, we will spend hours on social media or hours gossiping people’s business. Nowhere is gossiping more pronounced than in the church. The church as we know it is not a place of honesty. Why do I say this? Oftentimes we turn to the church in our moments of weakness and vulnerability yet, the solace and compassion that ...
Read more

Interrogating Black Fatherhood

-
Image
“What I've realized is that life doesn't count for much unless you're willing to do your small part to leave our children all of our children a better world. Any fool can have a child. That doesn't make you a father. It's the courage to raise a child that makes you a father.”- Barack Obama. Fatherhood, especially black fatherhood oftentimes is not as celebrated as it should. As a result we continue to hear of the arguments surrounding my mother who fathered me. There are specific roles concerning the sexes and frankly speaking mothers cannot father children, likewise fathers cannot mother children. Indeed as a society we need to move the discussion away from these examples of oxymoron. This flawed premise has been around so long and unfortunately has become normalized in many societies. However, the time has come for us to have a serious and honest discussion as this argument must be interrogated and replaced with a sense of responsibility. In fact, there is one m...
Read more