The Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) in the Central Region has conscientized people in the Region's capital on fire safety with a mammoth float through the principal streets of Cape Coast.

The float was in cognizance with the celebration of this year's International Firefighters' Day earmarked on theme, "The Contribution of the Firefighter to Safety, National Security and Sustainable Development." 

International Firefighters' Day (IFFD), as annually observed globally on May 4, is to remember gallant fire personnel who in the discharge of their civic duty to protect lives and properties lost their lives along the line.

The day is equally set aside to commemorate the lives of firefighters who were killed in the September 11 attacks, as it also witness stimulation and sensitization exercises across various parts of the world which Ghana forms no exception.

IFFD was established after a proposal by an Australian firefighter, JJ Edmondson, upon the sadden death of some five firefighters in Australia on December 2, 1998, following their quest to battle a bushfire.

Assistant Chief Fire Officer (ACFO I) John Amarlai Amartey, the Central Regional Commander of the GNFS in an interview with Sompa TV's Eric Annan, disclosed in admiration that residents in the region appears to gradually align to the constant fire safety campaign propagated by the Region's Fire Service command through its diverse means of sensitization.

According to him, fire incidents recorded in the first quarter of 2024 in the Central Region, indicates an appreciable drop of twenty-three percent (23%) compared to 2023.

He, however, appealed on residents in the Central Region to continually conform to all fire safety directives persistently disseminated by the Ghana National Fire Service in other for all to enjoy a free and safe community to reside.

Source: Sompaonline.com//Eric Annan