‘Don’t offload gas without presence of fire personnel’
The LEKMA Fire Station has cautioned all gas filling stations within the municipality to ensure that fire service personnel are present every time they offload gas.
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The Municipal Commander of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS), DOII Theophilus Dangbe, who gave the directive, said the initiative would enable the early detection of any leakages that could lead to a disaster.
“We are, therefore, advising the owners of filing stations to make it mandatory to involve fire service persons before, during and after offloading their fuel,” he added.
Training
Mr Dangbe gave the directive at the closing session of a training session at the LEKMA Fire Station held for 45 members of staff of four fuel stations in the municipality.
The staff members were drawn from the Teshie-Nungua Shell Filling station, the Spintex Road Shell, the Puma Filling station and EV Oil Filling Station.
The training was to educate the members of staff on fire prevention and how to combat fire at home and workplaces.
According to him, the training would elevate the role of individuals in the prevention of fires, as well as how to manage fires before the arrival of fire service personnel.
After a theoretical session at the fuel station, members of staff were given opportunity to practise what they had learned through hands-on demonstrations.
Adequate measures
Mr Dangbe urged the staff of the filing stations, especially attendants, to ensure that adequate measures were put in place to prevent and control fire outbreaks.
“LEKMA has put in place a contingency plan and safety audit for the various fuel stations in the municipality. It includes the ability to assess and determine high risk areas, escape routes, immediate prevention measures and response rate of the service, to minimise the rate of fires in the municipality,” he said.
For his part, the Spintex Branch Station Manager of EV Oil, Mr David Agblo, expressed the belief that the exercise would help the filling stations to prevent fire outbreaks.
“It is very necessary to educate our staff on fires. The education helps them to know what to do if there is fire outbreak. They are also able to pass on the education to others in order to save lives,” he said.