Spokesperson for the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS), Alex King Nartey, shared that many of the fire tenders previously out of service have been repaired and are now fully operational at different stations.
He stated that the service’s response capability has greatly improved, with plans for continued progress in the future.
“The situation has improved greatly, but we hope to acquire new appliances,” he said.
He added, “Over 80% of our fire tenders are back on the roads, and our chief and regional commanders are working tirelessly to ensure the rest are also back in operation. We have made tremendous progress in getting the fire tenders that were out of commission back on the road; the Abelemkpe station was out of commission, but it’s back; Amansaman was out of commission, but it’s back; Circle is back, and our Korle Bu station is also back in service,” King Nartey said.
In an interview on Joy News’ AM Show with Sweety Aboagye on Monday, November 18, Mr. Nartey addressed concerns about the state of fire safety in the country.
A report by JoyNews in October, obtained via the Right to Information Law (RTI), revealed that Ghana has just 248 fire tenders to serve its 30.8 million population.
According to the report, which was led by JoyNews editor Fred Smith, only 155 of these fire tenders were operational, while the remaining 133 were out of service across different regions.
As the dry season approaches, Mr. Nartey urged the public to follow fire safety guidelines. Additionally, new data from the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) shows that between January and September 2024, there were 4,650 recorded fire incidents.