The Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) is warning the public, particularly those who have made it a habit to assault firefighters who show up late to scenes of fire.
The most recent warning comes after residents of Apraman, a farming community near Kade, confronted and resisted Asamankese Fire Station officers soon after they arrived at a fire scene.
As their tender was already being dispatched, the staff members of the Asamankese Fire Station, who were to assist their colleagues at the Kade station, made a distressed call for assistance.
But the Asamankese tender also had an issue at Topreman, which is two kilometers from Apraman; as a result, the firefighters had to take a private vehicle to the scene. The residents became enraged by this situation and attacked the firefighters as a result.
By using buckets of water to successfully contain and control the fire, the firefighters were able to assess the situation and work with the angry locals after ASP Ernest Danso of the Ghana Police Service intervened promptly to defuse the tension.
Tragically, the contents of four separate residential units—each with nine bedrooms—were lost in the process. No casualties were reported, though.
In an interview with Citi News, Eastern Regional Fire Service Public Relations Officer D03 Ignatius Baidoo discussed the issue and urged the public to avoid attacking firefighters, pointing out that they put their lives in danger to save lives and safeguard the property of fire victims.
On February 8, a distressed call about a fire broke out at the Kade Fire Station. The tender was unable to respond to the fire scene because it had malfunctioned and was out of commission. Thus, the Asamankese Fire Station was called. Driving from Kade to Asamankese takes about one hour and thirty minutes. On route, though, the tender ran into an issue. To get to the location, they had to take a private vehicle. One of our men was even shoved down, in addition to being taunted and ridiculed.
“I’m pleading with the public to give firefighters time to assess the situation when they arrive at the scene, especially if you think there has been a delay because of inaccurate information or the fire service not getting timely information.” Please don’t belittle us because we risked our lives to get to your properties and turn the tide. D03 Ignatius Kwamina Baidoo declared, “We will not give up on our efforts, and we will keep serving.
