CAPTION: NFA firefighters conducting the fire investigation at the Davuilevu Housing house fire incident which happened on Sunday.
National Fire Authority (NFA) has again highlighted its concern on the recurring cases of home fire incidents in 2013.
A home fire incident at the Adi Davila Road in Davuilevu Housing in Nausori on Sunday has left three families homeless.
At 2348hrs, NFA Nausori received a property fire call at the Adi Davila Road, Davuilevu, Nausori.
Upon arrival at 2355hrs, the fire team saw the three flat concrete building fully engulfed with flames.
The fire teams from the Valelevu, Suva and Nausori Station were able to extinguish the fire and stopped it from spreading to the nearby houses.
NFA investigations are underway to determine the cause of this fire incident.
This house fire incident has increased the number of home fire incidents so far this year to twenty-one which has become a grave concern to the NFA.
The NFA is reminding members of the community to take fire safety seriously as a fire can destroy everything in its path without mercy.
However, home fires can be avoided as well, if home owners take extra care and practice fire safety with their family members.
NFA CEO John O’Connor said while the NFA tries its best to minimize the number of home fires, the NFA needs the support from all members of the community to reduce the fire incidents.
“NFA has attended to 25 property and small house fires this year and out of which 21 were home fire incidents.
“We are really concerned at the recent increase in the house fire incident,” Mr O’Connor said.
The NFA CEO has called on the members of the community and the stakeholders to work together in partnership to reduce the fire occurrence in Fiji,” Mr O’Connor said.
“Being fire safe is very important for every person. Fires can lead to severe destruction. Fire prevention is important and should be practiced in our homes.
Meanwhile NFA has also raised its concern on the bus fire incident which happened yesterday at Deuba Village in Navua.
“This bus fire incident is again a serious reminder of the importance of fire safety and fire mitigation strategies which seriously need to be followed to ensure the safety of the passengers on board,” Mr O’Connor said.
The NFA CEO highlighted the need for bus operators and drivers to thoroughly check the bus before leaving for their daily routine.
“Mr O’Connor highlighted that yesterday’s bus fire incident in Deuba Village in Navua is not the first bus fire incident case which NFA has attended to.
“In the past, NFA has attended to bus fire incidents and yesterday’s fire incident is again a serious one which put many lives at risk as a result of this fire incident.
“It is important that bus operators and drivers conduct proper maintenance works of all their fleet of buses.
“Bus operators and drivers should maintain their vehicles in such standards so that there are no fire risk and it is also particularly important that bus operators and drivers check the engine compartment of their bus and electronics devices in the bus as any defects from these section of the bus can lead to a fire incident.
“We hope that bus operators and drivers take heed of this fire safety message in their buses to avoid fires of similar nature from happening in the bus,” Mr O’Connor added.
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