BY CHRYSEE G. SAMILLANO
The Bureau of Fire Protection in Bacolod City is encouraging the barangays to create their own Community Fire Auxiliary Groups (CFAG’s) that will serve as first responders during emergency cases or fire incidents in their area.
Bacolod Fire Marshall Chief/Insp. Rodel Legaspi yesterday said the CFAG’s are the ones that will inform the BFP during emergency situation to ensure quick reaction.
“The earlier they can notify the nearest fire station, the better for all of us and the responders,” he said during an interview at the BFP culmination activity of the 2022 Fire Prevention Month yesterday.
Guest speaker was Dr. Anna Maria Laarni Pornan, Bacolod City Disaster Risk Reduction Management Office head.
Aside from their fire substation in Taculing, Legaspi said, Barangay Handumanan has also acquired its own fire truck this month using their local funds and had requested the BFP to conduct 40-hour training equivalent to a 5-day training of barangay tanods and leaders with the support of local officials.
Many barangays have also signified intentions to buy their own fire trucks and also requested them to conduct trainings. He hopes this will continue so they could help improve basic fire services expected by the people of Bacolod, he said, adding that Taculing has responded to 66 fire calls for the whole year.
Legaspi said they have also conducted symposiums, lectures and fire drills in barangays that have no fire trucks to relay the program of BFP, especially their Oplan Ligtas Na Pamayanan Program. They have also conduct “rekorida” or public address system to remind the public of fire safety tips and preventive measures they should observe daily in their homes.
BFP regional director Chief/Supt. Jerry Candido, who has been very supportive, is requesting him to look for a property that could be donated for the construction of a typical fire sub-station in the northern side of Bacolod so they could efficiently and effectively cover that area in terms of response time since most of their fire stations are located in the southern portion of the city, he said.
Bacolod has seven sub-stations aside from the BFP central office, he added.
Meanwhile, Legaspi said they are thankful that there were no major fire incidents in Bacolod this month except for a few structural fires. But most importantly, no lives were lost.
He attributed this to their partnership with the different stakeholders and their campaign for fire prevention, as well as the involvement of the different sectors of society in spreading fire safety campaign throughout the month-long celebration of Fire Prevention Month. This is addition to their continued program in the barangays that serves as force multipliers.
BFP-Bacolod honored their partners from the local governments, national and non-government agencies, CFAG, volunteer fire brigades, rescue groups and media partners during the culmination activity yesterday of this year’s Fire Prevention Month activity with the theme “Sa Pag-Iwas sa Sunog, Hindi ka Nag-iisa.”
Legaspi told their stakeholders that “we cannot do it alone and we thank you for partnering with us and for supporting the plans and programs of the Bureau of Fire Protection.”
There were a total of 25 fire incidents recorded this month in Bacolod City with an accumulated damage estimated at P205,100, BFP records showed.
These include five residential fires, one commercial fire, one storage fire, eight electrical post and two miscellaneous fires.
Records also showed that there were 21 recorded fire incidents in 2021 with a total estimated damage of P573,500, and 34 fire incidents in 2020 with a total estimated damage of P2,019,581.*
