Establish body to oversee fire disasters – Foundation

The Ghana Burns Survivors Foundation has appealed to the government to set up a permanent national body to look into the causes of frequent fire outbreaks in the country and provide support services to fire victims.

The body should also be charged to undertake sustained and vigorous national sensitization and educational campaign on the negative effects of fire, especially domestic ones, on individuals, families and the nation as a whole.

Mr Denis Opoku Gyamfi, National President of the Foundation who made the appeal, said the establishment of a permanent body had become necessary in view of the rampant outbreaks of fires, especially in the homes, which had brought serious health problems to many people and rendered others incapacitated.

Speaking to the Ghana News Agency in Kumasi, Mr Gyamfi said burns from domestic fire outbreaks have now become a serious health issue in Ghana and there is the need to find a permanent solution to reduce them.

He said with the current production of natural gas in commercial quantities, most people both in rural and urban communities were likely to use for various purposes.

There is therefore the need for a body to conduct permanent and sustained education to ensure fire safety in homes and also provided financial, health and other support services to people who may be injured by fire.

Mr Gyamfi said even though the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) is doing some kind of education that is not enough.

“There is the need for a permanent body, where survivors can go to seek support because treatment for burns is very expensive and survivors need some kind of support to undergo treatment”, he explained.

Mr Gyamfi called on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) the Ghana Gas Company and Ministry of Energy to come together to educate the public on the negative effects of gas production to enable the public take precautionary measures to reduce gas explosion in homes.

Source: GNA