$12m in firefighting vehicles requested, says police chief

By KEILE CAMPBELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kcampbell@tribunemedia.net

THE Royal Bahamas Police Force (RBPF) has formally requested 21 firefighting vehicles and equipment, with an estimated price tag of $12m.

However, Commissioner of Police Shanta Knowles cautioned that even if approved, the procurement will be slow.

“One engine takes 17 months to be completed, and then of course it has to be shipped,” she told reporters.

The proposed fleet includes four tankers, three ladder trucks, and several pump trucks, each to be fully outfitted with gear for officers.

“Hopefully we can get them as soon as possible,” Commissioner Knowles said. “Of course, you know the budget is almost completed, and then we’ll move further ahead with that.”

National Security Minister Wayne Munroe, during the 2025–2026 Budget debate, acknowledged these long-standing gaps and affirmed plans to acquire 15 to 20 custom-built engines suited to the Bahamas’ terrain. Still, he warned that global supply chain issues and the complexity of specialised builds mean delays are unavoidable.

Meanwhile, a fire in the Adelaide area remains seemingly unreachable by RBPF firefighting engines, Commissioner Knowles said. She noted that the vehicles “can’t access the fire as easily as they’d want to”, but heavy equipment—secured with the help of community partners—has been deployed to carve out firebreaks. She credited these efforts with preventing the blaze from reaching nearby homes, adding that firefighters were still on the scene at the time of reporting.

In recent months, multiple fires have scorched parts of The Bahamas—from downtown Nassau to the rural outskirts of Eleuthera and Abaco. The most devastating occurred in May, when flames tore through Victoria Court near Bay Street, reducing historic buildings to ash and rubble and prompting a full-scale emergency response, including a temporary closure of Lynden Pindling International Airport. Elsewhere, brush fires in Abaco and Grand Bahama have threatened infrastructure and forced evacuations.

The country made a leap forward in 2022 with the acquisition of four high-capacity Oshkosh Striker ARFF vehicles for major airports, but structural fire response—particularly on the Family Islands—has remained patchy. Grand Bahama only received an operational structural fire truck in early 2025, with South Eleuthera following suit shortly afterward.

Comments

ExposedU2C says...

LOL. Just in time for a local automobile dealer to arrange for a major campaign contribution to be made to the PLP using a kick-back of a portion of the taxpayers' funds received to buy the fire engines at an outrageously inflated contract price.

Posted 27 June 2025, 5:27 p.m. Suggest removal

bcitizen says...

Where are those underwater drones?

Posted 28 June 2025, 1:22 p.m. Suggest removal

Twocent says...

We are constantly told …”climate change” and the associated risk of more bush fires. As an island nation are we not behooved to consider the firefighting needs of every island? Is it not more efficient and cost effective to think about a “super scooper” plane and all the sea water we have?

Posted 30 June 2025, 12:02 p.m. Suggest removal

bogart says...

Perhaps dey shouldda gone on the INTERNET like everybody does these days and be looking for the vehicles and hired a team of very purposeful innovative practical Jamaican mechanics to alter and reconfigure the used vehicles to get the job done.

Posted 1 July 2025, 10:02 a.m. Suggest removal

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