BY DENISE MAYCOCK

Tribune Freeport Reporter

dmaycock@tribunemedia.net

NATIONAL Security Minister Wayne Munroe said efforts are underway to address the lack of functional firefighting equipment in Grand Bahama, revealing that all fire trucks on the island were submerged in salt water during Hurricane Dorian in 2019, leading to breakdowns and costly repairs.

Currently, the airport’s fire truck is the only operational vehicle on the island, as none of the five trucks at the Fire Station in Freeport are usable.

Kwasi Thompson, MP for East Grand Bahama, had raised concerns from residents about the response time for fire trucks from Freeport to the east settlements.

“The concern is the airport fire truck, I don’t believe can make that trip to High Rock and be back in sufficient time to be in the airport if there is a flight,” Mr Thompson said. “And so that is the immediate concern for residents who live in Freetown, Bevans Town, High Rock, Pelican Point, Rocky Creek, and McLeans Town.”

“There is a very real concern, and we pray there is no fire that takes place between now and when the equipment comes on stream.”

Mr Thompson noted that members of the opposition have met with the officer in charge of Grand Bahama, who informed them that funding was approved and that necessary parts are on the way. He also revealed plans to meet with Commissioner of Police Shanta Knowles to address these concerns further.

Mr Munroe said that officials discovered widespread deficiencies in firefighting equipment across The Bahamas when the Davis administration came to power.

“The issue has been raised about fire deltas in Grand Bahama,” he said. “When coming to office, we found there were deficiencies of firefighting apparatus across the entire Commonwealth of The Bahamas, which is more than New Providence and Grand Bahama.”

He explained that the fire chief was tasked with developing a solution tailored to the unique challenges of each island.

“There are some islands that just deal with pumps, where everything is on the coast, and some cannot,” he said.

Regarding Grand Bahama, he said all firefighting equipment had been increasingly costly to maintain after what happened during Hurricane Dorian.

“There has been a continuing expense to keep them in service to the point that it becomes more and more expensive as the equipment breaks down,” he said.

He revealed that the previous commissioner of police, after consultations, arranged a trip with the fire chief to a provider in the United Kingdom proposing to supply 15 firefighting apparatus for The Bahamas.

“The challenge is that we’ve abandoned ground wells to service hydrants because modern delta pumps are too high-strung to pump water from the ground, and there is limited water provided by Water and Sewerage or potable water suppliers,” he said.

“It is anticipated that, toward the end of this month, they will be attending there to ensure that the equipment meets the specifications of The Bahamas. And consideration will have to be given once that is done.”

In the short term, he said measures such as expensive repairs or cannibalising parts from existing delta trucks to keep others operational are being addressed by the fire chief of the Royal Bahamas Police Force.