Governor of Delta, Senator (Dr.) Ifeanyi Okowa, on Thursday called for effective fire-fighting service in the country, saying it would minimise the effect of fire incidents on the people.

The governor made the call while inaugurating two fire-fighting trucks procured by the Federal Fire Service (FFS) for its zonal office in Asaba.

Tagged Zone K, the command covers Delta, Edo, and Bayelsa, and has Asaba as headquarters.

Okowa advised that for any outbreak of fire, it is important for speedy efforts to be made to curtail the extent of damage that it may cause, stressing that effective fire service would help in this regard.

“The donation of these fire-fighting trucks and the choice of Asaba as the Zonal Headquarters for Zone K is a welcome development.

“We are being of assistance when there is fire outbreak even in our neighbouring states.

“We have an efficient fire service in the state and this addition which will see the FFS playing complementary roles will be of great assistance to us as it will help to attend to vast areas in the state bearing in mind that we have a lot of urban areas.

“There is a lot of destruction when you have a fire incident that is not checked; no one knows the extent fire incident will cause that is why there should be prompt response when there is a fire outbreak,” Governor Okowa said.

He thanked FFS for choosing Delta as zonal headquarters and assured that his administration would cooperate with them to enable them succeed in their activities.

Earlier, the Comptroller-General of FFS, Dr Ibrahim Liman, had said: “FFS, as the apex fire-fighting organisation in Nigeria, monitors developments in the fire services across the country, especially as it relates to the preparedness status of fire-fighting mobile and fixed assets.

“It also evaluates the strength and quality of firefighters in the public sector.

“We know that only a few of the states that own fire services have done fairly in this regard and Delta State stands out from the records available to us.

“We are aware that your administration has sustainably rehabilitated and upgraded firefighting equipment and infrastructure across the state.”

•PHOTO: Delta State Governor, Senator Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa (left), receiving Award from the Deputy Controller General of the Federal Fire Service (DCGF), Azogu Gerald, during a courtesy call on the Governor, in Government House Asaba. Photo: JIBUNOR SAMUEL