City firefighters lack access to water
We began tonight’s newscast on the subject of water…and it is on that note we will end. This water, however, is not the kind you drink; it’s the equally precious liquid used to put out fires. And according to city fire service officials, it’s becoming dangerously scarce. Patrick Jones reports.
Patrick Jones, Reporting
When firemen rush to the scene of a burning building, their primary concern is to put the flames out and prevent the blaze from spreading. That is why circumstances surrounding selected water sources, like this one at the foot of the swing bridge in Belize City, are of particular concern to the Fire Department.
Assistant Fire Chief Ted Smith says while it?s a strategic location, recent developments have rendered this facility practically useless to fire fighters.
Ted Smith, Assistant Fire Chief
“You can see the food vendors have a stall that extended out to obstruct the passage way, there is an electrical line just above our heads which is lower that the height that is necessary to clear the fire truck, then we have here a vehicle parked within the designated fire water head area. And therefore you can see a number of obstructions and difficulties that would face us.”
While there was little they could do to save the Paslow Building two years ago, Smith says this open water source was not accessible to fire trucks at the time because of the obstruction. That was despite a sign posted in front, designating the area as a water head. But exactly what constitutes a water head?
Ted Smith
“The water heads are open water sources. It can be here, can be considered a water head, the sea and we have access to it, the canals that we have access to, a pool can be considered a water head, a lake is a water head. Areas that we can actually go and lift the water ourselves with the truck, where our flow of water would be depended on the capacity of the pump ratings, the amount of water the pump can supply.”
Over on the other end of North Front Street, firefighters would drop their hoses at the mouth of the river in the event of a fire in the Fort George area; but gaining access to this public area would depend on a watchman opening the gates. And even so, debris from the nearby cooperative is a potential hindrance to fire trucks getting close enough to the waters edge to pump water.
Ted Smith
“It may slow us down a few minutes, which in some case may be very vital in containing a fire and which can then result in water being out on the fire ground for a few minutes.”
Patrick Jones
“When you arrive at a scene like this and you find these difficulties, how do you work around them?”
Ted Smith
“Like for example this one, we?ll not be able to work around this one because of the electrical lines and the shed that extended out. So we?ll not be able to work around this one. We’ll have to then compromise and locate new areas, which would cost time.”
Vital time and energy that would be best used to actually fight the fire. In the case of the recent blaze at the Simon Quan warehouse, Smith says the Department had to use the Angelus Press parking lot to get to the river.
Ted Smith
“We are presently doing the best we can, we?re working with the City Council in restoring these water head to an acceptable standards or a reasonable standard so we can lift water and re-supply the fire scene with water. Water heads are strategic points to acquire water to re-supply the fire ground. Fire tucks only carry so much water. Each one of our trucks right now only carry twelve hundred and fifty gallons of water.”
And with the trucks able to pump out over a hundred gallons per minute, one tank would only last a few minutes.
Ted Smith
“Sometimes you arrive and a fire is in such a development state that you just can’t deploy one or two lines to contain a little until we can get the supplementary supply from an open water head. You would have to deploy additional branch lines to ensure that the fire does not spread cross the street or to the near buildings, which would then exhaust our supply quite easily in the tank, if the next truck is unable to get to water heads such as these and quickly re-supply the scene.”
Vendors we spoke with say they were given permission to set up stalls in these areas by the City Council on condition that they give way to firefighters in cases of emergencies. Smith says that?s not an acceptable arrangement.
Ted Smith
“It wouldn’t be acceptable to us because time is very important during fire fighting. And when we look at our city, we don’t have that size of street that we can entertain a lot of vehicle on the side. When traffic is flowing and the fire truck is coming, there is very little areas for these vehicles ahead to pull off to the side. As a result for them to be able to exit out freely and move around as they want that might not be practical in an emergency.”
As a member of the Utility Coordination Committee at City Hall, the Fire Department has been voicing its concerns over clearing these designated water heads, but to date the situation continues to persist. In the meantime, Smith says the public can help make their job a little easier.
Ted Smith
“We will hope and use this opportunity to ask people, motorists, not to obstruct the hydrants, park around them or over them to give us a reasonable space so that we can utilize them in times of emergency.”
Patrick Jones, for News 5.
