Water hydrants in Accra CBD dysfunctional

Most of the water hydrants in the central business district of Accra are dysfunctional and that could be a major setback to fighting fire outbreaks in the area.

The discovery followed an inspection tour of the hydrants by the leadership of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) in the area last Thursday.

The tour formed part of measures being put in place by the GNFS to ensure that enough water is available for the service to tackle fire outbreaks, in view of the intensification of the Harmattan.

When a team of fire officers, led by the Greater Accra Regional Fire Commander, Deputy Chief Fire Officer (DCFO) Mr Ebenezer Simpson, inspected four of the hydrants, it was detected that there was no water in three of them, while the only one that had water functioned under very low pressure.

The team inspected the hydrants at different locations at the Makola Market, where it was detected that the hydrants had been blocked as a result of the activities of traders who had mounted tables and other structures on them to display their wares.

It took the fire officers a hell of time to remove the structures, as well as the displayed wares, to ascertain the state of the hydrants.

Call

To avert any calamity in the event of a fire outbreak during the Harmattan, the GNFS called on the Ghana Water Company Limited (GWCL) to revamp all dysfunctional water hydrants.

Explaining the import of the inspection tour, Mr Simpson said the onset of the Harmattan required that the GNFS put in place strategic measures to deal with fire outbreaks that the weather condition could trigger.

"The Harmattan has set in, and as the body mandated to protect lives and properties, we are being proactive in positioning ourselves to respond to any fire outbreak.

"As you can see for yourselves, the water hydrants have been blocked. This is not a good thing because we will not be able to fight fire without water," he pointed out.

Mr Simpson said the operation would be carried out in other parts of the city to ensure that all dysfunctional hydrants were restored, stressing that the move required collaboration from all stakeholders, since fire prevention was a collective responsibility.

He urged the Accra Metropolitan Assembly (AMA) to cordon off the hydrants and the GWCL to ensure that the hydrants were functional.

Mr Simpson said past experiences had shown that more fires occurred during the harmattan season, for which reason he urged the public to be cautious when handling fire at home and commercial centres.

He further urged the public to put in place fire safety measures such as acquiring fire extinguishers and other equipment.