Rwanda police launch nationwide fire safety training after recent blazes
The Fire and Rescue Brigade will train residents to use extinguishers and equipment before firefighters arrive, starting in November.
Rwanda National Police has launched a nationwide campaign to teach communities how to prevent fires and respond before firefighters arrive. The campaign began in November and will run in districts across the country, with training sessions planned at bus stations, churches, hotels, markets, garages and large buildings.
Assistant Commissioner of Police Paul Gatambira, head of the Fire and Rescue Brigade, said the training will cover how fires start and spread, how to prevent them, and how to use available equipment. He said information often reaches police late, and that people trained to use extinguishers could take first steps while firefighters are on their way. Police spokesperson ACP Boniface Rutikanga told RBA that firefighters can respond only after a fire has broken out.
The campaign follows several major fires since mid-October. The most destructive was at GOICO market in Muhoza Sector, Musanze District, where goods valued at about Rwf 30 billion were destroyed, according to an assessment. Other recent fires in Kigali damaged factories in the city's industrial zone. Police are urging welders to keep extinguishers within reach, and asking developers and managers of commercial buildings to install water supplies and piping for fighting fires.
Why it mattersManagers of commercial buildings, hotels, markets and garages are asked to install water supplies and piping and to check that extinguishers work and are sufficient in number.