Government’s failures to implement wildfire strategy costing lives, livelihood- Granger

The adage – ‘A single spark can start a prairie fire’ – has become an axiom for residents of the Rupununi savannahs. Wildfires in the Rupununi Region killed and chased wildlife from their natural habitats and destroyed over 12, 000 km² of land – an area larger than Jamaica – in 2024.  The prudent draft National Wildfire Strategy proposed useful measures to manage and mitigate wildfire risks but were never implemented.

Hinterland fires have been caused in part by arson; reckless burning of vegetation and garbage; careless use of flammable fluids (such as kerosene and gasoline) and handling of open flames; clearing of farm lands and by heat resulting from prolonged dry weather. El Niño phenomenon contributes to the spread of wildfires by drying-up vegetation and waterways. Fires surpassed forestry and mining as the main cause of hinterland deforestation.

Former President David Granger, speaking on the programme – The Public Interest – reminded that Guyana’s hinterland west of Fort Island contains communities that suffer disproportionately from fires – distressing households, disrupting lives and destroying buildings – but comprises 152, 000 km², or over 70 percent of the national territory.

The record of damage, death and destruction is staggering – an entire shopping arcade with two dozen small buildings was destroyed in Mahdia, in July 2010; a housewife, her two daughters and two sons were killed in a fire in Port Kaituma, in March 2014; the secondary school was destroyed by fire in Mabaruma in September 2021; 20 children were killed in a fire in a  school dormitory in Mahdia in May 2023; an aged farmer was killed in a wildfire at his farm near Akwero in March 2024; an aged pensioner was killed in a fire at his home in Bartica in July 2024; a disabled teenager was killed in a fire at Imbaimadai in August 2024; the RDC office was destroyed by fire in Mabaruma in September 2024 and 15 buildings were destroyed by fire at Puruni in October 2024.

The Guyana National Bureau of Standards’ Building Code, which includes fire safety recommendations, should be enforced to ensure that new buildings are designed and constructed in accordance with safety standards and in locations which inhibit fires, facilitate prevention and provide for safe evacuation and rescue. The Code should also ensure that public buildings are equipped with fire alarms, exits and extinguishers and that day-time occupants and night-time security guards are trained to respond to emergencies.

Mr Granger acknowledged that hinterland fire-fighting has improved with the establishment of regional fire stations in the four capital towns – Bartica, Mahdia, Mabaruma and Lethem. This was necessary, but not sufficient, to ensure safety. There is still need for much more communication through community and schools’ safety awareness campaigns, enforcement of prevention and safety regulations, enhanced environmental stewardship, exercises and rehearsals for mass occupants and the deployment of technologically appropriate equipment such as vehicle-drawn appliances to prevent and extinguish fires. Central, regional and municipal administrations need to pursue the installation of fire hydrants, acquisition of fire boats in the capital towns and activation of the voluntary Auxiliary Fire and Ambulance Service under the Fire Service Act.

The former president expressed the view that the four hinterland regions deserve a higher level of administration, organisation and operation preparedness and should not be treated as ‘the bush’. A national fire protection plan is needed to incorporate the hinterland Neighborhood Police and Community Policing Groups into the Auxiliary Fire and Ambulance Service in order to respond to alarms or extinguish fires. The adoption of modern measures by an intelligent Ministry of Home Affairs and a diligent Fire Service could go a far way towards protecting the hinterland population and preserving the environment for posterity.