As we are entering the dry season, which always brings fires to our communities, we all should be on alert for fires.
To safeguard communities in regions and states, every community in a high-risk area needs to have risk-reduction plans plan for minimizing vulnerabilities to fire.
The plans would include preventing illegal storage and trading of fuels and intensifying the fire response activities such as encouraging fire drills and creating critical buffers.
Generally, high winds and dry temperatures in the summer are the perfect ingredients for a fire.
As the climate warms, fires spread faster and burn hotter.
However, we have seen fires caused by a short circuit and people’s negligence annually.
Many fires have been human-caused and these are all preventable.
Fires including forest fire are one of the nine natural disasters adopted by the country to be addressed.
Hence, we need to design a programme to reduce the number of fires by helping people understand how fires occur and we need to review our yearly plans in accordance with the changing types of natural disasters and modern technologies.
However, we have seen fires caused by a short circuit and people’s negligence annually.
While people may react differently to various forms of disaster, such as evacuating from a fire or sheltering in place following an earthquake, With any disaster, preparedness is the same. The more prepared we are, the better our survivability.
Prevention works must be conducted in places where natural disaster could occur and preparedness and drills must be conducted nationwide.
Having correct and timely information was important in conducting search, rescue and rehabilitation works. Emphasis must be placed down to the grassroots for this.
We can take concrete steps and should still practice how to be safe when disasters happen.
We have to look at how we fight fires, how we prevent fires and how we design communities.
We can’t just spray water on this year’s fire and hope that next year will be better. It won’t be, unless we reduce fires caused by our negligence or human caused.
Nobody can predict what’s going to happen. We can hope for the best, but we must prepare for the worst so we can be ready should the need arise.
