The Greater Accra Regional Director of the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO), Dennis Adjanor Nartey, has expressed serious concern regarding the increasing difficulty in accessing fire hydrants due to unauthorized structures built around them.
He emphasised that this situation significantly hampers the ability of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) to quickly access water during fire outbreaks, thereby worsening emergency response efforts.
Mr. Adjanor made these remarks at a community fire awareness forum organised by NADMO in collaboration with the Ghana National Fire Service and other key stakeholders in the Ashaiman Municipality.
The forum brought together market women, business operators, and residents to educate them on fire prevention and safety measures.
He stressed that this sensitisation exercise is particularly necessary for market women and residents to help them understand the causes of fire outbreaks and the steps required to prevent them.
Mr. Adjanor lamented that practices such as leaving fires unattended after cooking, illegal electrical connections, and overloading of power sockets continue to be major contributors to fire incidents in markets and homes.
“We’re doing investigations on fire hydrants in this country and, when we went round, we saw that some of the fire hydrants have kiosks built on them.
“In the case of a fire, if the fire service comes around and their water gets finished, they should get to the nearest hydrants that can support them. When you realise people have built kiosks on it, how difficult it is to access this hydrant.
“Market women and other stakeholders are invited for this programme, and we’re teaching them about the things that can cause fire outbreaks and how to prevent them.
“Because this time, when there’s a fire outbreak, especially at night, we’ve advised market women not to sleep in the market. Some sleep there and use mosquito coils, and as a result of forgetfulness, it can cause a fire outbreak.
“The weather is very dry right now, so we are sending this message to everyone. Ashaiman has done well, and my director has also performed admirably. We are educating people in all parts of Accra.
“For those in Accra who may be watching through this programme, we appeal to them: right now, any fire outbreak is very difficult to extinguish, and they shouldn’t think only about the relief items they will receive, because if we lose a life, we can never bring that life back again,” he advised.
Meanwhile, the Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the Electricity Company of Ghana (ECG) in Tema, Madam Sakyiwaa Mensah, cautioned that illegal power connections are criminal offences punishable by law, including possible imprisonment.
She urged the public to desist from such practices and to report anyone engaged in illegal connections.
