Mini fire tender boost for Pernem fire station
New fire station being planned for town
THE GOAN NETWORK
PERNEM
The ill-equipped fire station at Pernem town received a major boost when a 'Mini Rescue Tenders' was inducted into the Pernem fire station on Saturday.
The fully-equipped mini-rescue tender is not only expected to provide the fire station with the much-needed machinery to tackle fire and emergency incidents, but the smaller vehicle would be ideal to pass along the narrow and winding roads in Pernem taluka.
Welcoming the arrival of the mini-rescue tender, many locals commended the efforts of Forest Minister and Pernem MLA Rajendra Arlekar for adding more equipment and machinery to the Pernem fire station.
With barely two fire tenders and 11 fire fighters assigned to protect 20 panchayats and one town, the Pernem fire station had been fighting against the odds in the taluka.
Being understaffed and ill-equipped was not the only concern for the fire station in Pernem. Reaching the site of an emergency call had been as challenging a task for the fire tenders as tackling the emergency itself.
Bad roads, inaccessible routes, encroachments and haphazard parking on roads were some of the many obstacles facing the firefighters.
A major problem for the fire station was its very location in Pernem taluka.
The Pernem fire station is situated in one corner of Pernem town, where many roads between the fire station and the town are narrow, winding and in bad shape. The driver would be expected to carefully maneuver the fire tender to avoid road mishaps, adding to the delay in reaching a site.
Efforts are also afoot to build a fire station along the NH17.
Earlier speaking to The Goan, Pernem Municipal Council Chairperson Smita Kudtarkar felt the fire station should be located at a more strategic location.
“Plans are now being made to shift the fire station outside Pernem town and it will be done with the assistance of Rajendra Arlekar,” Kudtarkar had earlier told The Goan.
When contacted, Arlekar had confirmed plans to shift the fire station on the outskirts of Pernem city.
“We have decided to build an independent fire station along the NH-17 and land acquisition process will start soon,” informed Arlekar.
Chief Minister Laxmikant Parsekar, who is also MLA of Mandrem constituency, felt the public also had a role to play in minimising delays by the fire services in reaching an emergency site.
“People should cooperate with road-widening works and should not indulge in constructions by encroaching on the roads. How will a fire tender reach a site if there are constructions on both sides of a narrow road? People should think about such situations,” Parsekar had told The Goan.
