These incessant fire outbreaks

FOR some time now, fire outbreaks have been wreaking havoc across the land. On Wednesday,  a fire outbreak at the Old Airport Junction in Jos, Plateau State, destroyed several shops and offices, leaving traders and business owners counting their losses. Eyewitnesses said the inferno began around 4:00 p.m., prompting frantic calls to the fire service stations in Jos South and Jos North Local Government Areas. An official of the Jos Fire Service said: “Once we received the report, our team was dispatched to the location. We have managed to put out the fire.” The outbreak follows a similar incident last month at the Katako Timber Market in Jos North Local Government Area, where over 107 shops were gutted, leaving more than 200 people devastated and goods worth over ₦1 billion  destroyed. In Nasarawa State, residents in 13 local government areas are reported to have lost property worth N6.5 billion to fire disasters in the last one year. This was disclosed by the state Controller of the Federal Fire Service, Eno Nwachukwu-Kelechi, during the commencement of the agency’s Fire Week Awareness Campaign Programme in Lafia, the state capital.

Earlier, worried by the outbreaks in the state, the Nasarawa State House of Assembly had made efforts to reposition the State Fire Service to tackle fire outbreaks and for effective service delivery in the state. It passed for second reading a Bill for a Law to Establish the  Nasarawa State Fire and Rescue Service Agency to provide for the ‘Suppression of Fires, Rescue of Persons and Animals from Hazardous Situations and for Other Matters Connected Thereto’. The bill, the lawmakers said, would also address the challenges of fire outbreaks and other disasters in the state.

Last month, property worth millions of naira got destroyed in a fire outbreak at a spare parts market in the Idumota area of Lagos State. Permanent Secretary of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, said the fire occurred at night, and that preliminary investigations showed that multiple buildings used as shops for the sale of car spare parts were razed. In February, the Osun Fire Service indicated that the state recorded 70 fire outbreaks in the state between January and December 2023, putting the property lost to fire outbreaks in the year under review at N1.45 billion. Spokesman for the fire service, Mr Adekunle Ibrahim, said the majority of the fire outbreaks were caused by carelessness on the part of the citizens. He advised residents to always unplug their electrical appliances when not in use and turn off their electricity while leaving home, and to be mindful of bush burning, especially during dry season, as well as their activities in the kitchen.

Across the country, fire outbreaks are wreaking monumental havoc, and it is time governments at all levels stepped up their enlightenment campaigns on the menace. With the harmattan in the land, the importance of people and the government taking precautions cannot be overemphasised. Bush burning is best avoided, as is speeding, which can cause road accidents and fires, particularly through head-on collisions. In addition to strictly enforcing environmental laws, including those relating to proper disposal of wastes, governments across the country evidently have a bounden duty to keep reminding people of the dangers inherent in fire outbreaks. On their part, citizens also have a duty to do everything within their capacity to prevent fire outbreaks, whether in markets, offices or homes.

In this regard, the advisory issued by the Lagos State command of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) earlier this year remains relevant. The command recommends using the following tips to prevent fire outbreaks: Remove dry leaves and grasses from your surroundings. Check your residence, offices and places of business for faulty electrical wiring and also avoid overloading electrical circuits.  Keep flammable items such as insecticides and perfumes away from open fire. Do not leave food on fire unattended to. Check your gas cylinders for leakages at the depot before refilling them.  Avoid smoking indoors and endeavour to properly put out your cigarettes even while smoking outdoors. Ensure you have fire extinguishers in your homes, car, offices, shops and also make sure you know how to properly use them. Avoid using cooking gas to power your generator. Avoid bush/outdoor burning as it can rapidly spread in dry conditions. Endeavour to buy your petrol, kerosene, gas, diesel from reputable sources. Do not cut corners. Schedule routine maintenance for your household appliances as they can cause a fire outbreak when not properly cared for.

We endorse these commonsensical, well thought out recommendations and urge all Nigerians to comply with them. In human and material losses, fire outbreaks have cost the country a lot already. Livelihoods have been ruined, often irreparably, and it is time everyone took more than a passing interest in happenings around them. As experience has shown, such simple habits as making sure that firewood or charcoal fire is properly quenched, or that the gas cylinder cylinder is properly shut down before leaving the homestead, can prove to be the difference between safety and destruction. Turning off most or all electric appliances when leaving the home or office is not just about saving energy costs; it is also about preventing fire calamities and the mental agony that comes with them. Those who keep their homes safe from fire outbreaks aren’t just doing themselves  and their neighbours a service; they are also living responsibly by keeping their environment safe from pollution.

We wish Nigerians a Yuletide without fire outbreaks.

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