FIRE CHIEF BLAMES CONGESTION FOR SPREAD OF FIRE IN SP
The National Fire Service has come under fire in San Pedro, where 87 persons have allegedly been left homeless by a blaze which occurred on Saturday at around 1:10am. Many residents have claimed that inadequate response and inadequate equipment were what caused the fire to spread to as many as ten homes.
But today Fire Chief Ted Smith stated that “whether we had arrived with five trucks and 20 men, it would be extremely difficult to contain the fire because the members of the (Fire) Department don’t have the opportunity to properly implement what we call the three-pronged attack within the area because of the close proximity.”
Despite the congestion in the area where the fire occurred, however, the reality is that the Fire Department is faced with lack of resources and old fire trucks that some people have described as “antiques.”
Since 2016 there have been three major fires on the island and residents have consistently blamed antiquated and malfunctioning equipment for the way the firefighting strategy was applied in each case.
The fire was incendiary, meaning that someone started it, on the lower flat of a two-storey structure on Conch Shell Street in the Boca del Rio area. He added that the Fire Department was not made aware of it until the Police Department informed them at 1:36am on Saturday and that when they arrived at the scene, two structures were already engulfed in flames.
According to Smith, two fire trucks have already been sourced for use in San Pedro.
