By Samuel Ogude(Warri)
It would always be on the Newspapers, Magazines, Radio and Television News, how houses get burnt in Nigeria nay Delta State, Warri and its environs in occasional basis but more frequently, during the festive seasons such as Christmas and New Year. If other years are forgotten, one can not forget in hurry the houses that were raised down by fire during the yuletide- Christmas 2022 and the month of January, 2023 in Warri and its environs. The areas mostly affected are Iyara, Odion, Ajamimogha and Karien, to mention but few – all in Warri South Local Government Area of the state.
In these, many families were and are still being rendered homeless and properties worth millions of naira have been destroyed. No doubt, the people affected by these fires cried for help from Nigerians both from home and Diaspora: Individuals, Corporate Bodies or Government at the different levels, still using the same media. What they wanted was some cash to enable them fix their accommodations and purchase some clothing materials as many of them were left with nothing but what they were wearing before inferno started.
The fact is that, fire does not just happen; it is caused by the action of man. While it is agreed that not all fire outbreaks are not man-made, research has shown that about 90% of fire outbreaks are man’s action. In the quest to unravel more facts about the occurrence of fire, Bailout Magazine had a chat with experts in this direction. Ogwu Kingsley .O. the Head of Operation Fire Service in Warri, Delta State said, armed robbers come to someone’s house and rob money and other valuables but fire robs everything in totality- both humans and materials. According to him, fire does not just happen but caused by man. He said in the festive period coupled with the harmattan, lots of activities take place hence people are not careful of what they do because they too busy.
Many people don’t switch off their electrical appliances when they are leaving their homes or offices especially when there is power outage. And by the time power is restored, and there is an overflow of current, it can result into electric sparks which cause fire outbreaks . He said:” Most fire outbreaks are caused by the action of man. Many people forget to switch off their electrical appliances when leaving their homes or offices or sleeping especially when ,there is power outage and when power is restored, there is the possibility of an overflow of current which can cause sparks which eventually cause fire, because, most of the fires occur in the night.”
Apart from the above, research has shown that many people fail to switch off their gas cylinders after cooking and when gas emits and gets in contact with fire, it can ignite it (fire) which can burn the whole building. Fire can also be caused by candle light in the house that is left while the owner goes to bed. Before he knows, it has burnt the curtain and other materials and the whole building. Many fires would have been prevented from escalating if the victims can put a call across to the fire- service men in that area but in most cases, many resort to selves help. According to Kingsley, many people think that, they have no money to pay fire service men to put out their fire hence they fail to put a call across to their office and resort to selves help which according to him, makes the fire to gain ground and eventually burn the entire property.
According to Kingsley, the fire service is free as the Delta State government pays their salary so, they don’t charge money for service delivery. He said, they would always put out fire each time they are called upon. He said: “Many people are scared to call us because they fear that they would pay for the service(s) and therefore resort to use area boys and before they know it, the fire has escalated and gone beyond control”.
Again, Kingsley said another thing is that, for those who place a call on them upon fire incident, the area boys, most often, prevent them from doing their job because they(area boys) always want to dictate for them on what to do whereas they(fire service men) are the experts in this field. He said:”Quenching fire involves some technicalities. It is not just a question of pouring water, there are techniques for that. The fire victims and the area people should not be dictating for us the best way to quench fire because we are experts on the job. Their interference in most cases, further inhibits our effective performance and when the fire gets out of hands due to their actions, they begin to blame us, this is bad”
While the fire service men are always there, it is advisable for every home and office to have fire extinguishers. Here comes the role of the fire service men as they know the kind of fire extinguisher one should have at homes or offices. Kingsley said:” We are experts; we should be consulted as to the kind of fire extinguisher individuals, corporate bodies should buy because all fire extinguishers are not the same. The intensity of the fire much depends on the kind of fire extinguisher to be used. Most fires can be put out by fire extinguisher before they escalate”.
According to Kingsley, about seven fire incidents were attended to by their officers between the Christmas 2022 and the New Year, January, 2023 in Warri and its environs. And these fires, it did not take them time to get to the venue of the fire incident on receiving a call despite the huddles such as traffic jam to the venues in some cases. He said the Delta State government is trying as it has provided firefighting equipment which has enhanced fire fighting in the state but is not out of place if well- meaning Nigerians both at home and abroad help to provide vehicles and other necessary materials to aid their jobs in the state . He therefore advised the public to be careful in whatever they do to prevent fire than allow it happen and begin to fight it. If this can be done, fire will be prevented; humans and properties would be saved.