The role Kenyan firefighters will play during the Pope’s visit

Author Reference

Benard, L. (2015): The role Kenyan firefighters will play during the Pope’s visit. Intel Fire Group of Companies Blog. Nairobi, Kenya.

Pope Francis arrives for his weekly general audience in a modified Hyundai SUV

It is no longer a speculation that the Pope is coming to Kenya but a confirmation that the visit will be this month of November from 25 to 27 has been officially made. The visit brings with it intrigues and speculations especially among the catholic faithful who are looking forward to meeting their spiritual leader.  The Kenyan security organs have given an indication that the visit will attract at least 1.5 million people to the capital Nairobi. Since the university of Nairobi graduation square where the pope will be holding a mass cannot accommodate all, the venue will be restricted to 200 thousand. The Pope who has also sent a message of “down to earth” by rejecting state of the class reception and hosting, will (if speculations are true) ride in a modified Toyota probox which is the opposite of a tiny and modest Fiat and the Kenyan version of the lowly rated vitz car (note that this is all speculation unless you confirm this with one J M Baraza – a petrol head). After all is said and done, what is the role of Kenyan firefighters during this visit and are they prepared?

While visiting Philadelphia during one of the weekends in September 2015 and close to one million people were expected to travel to Benjamin Franklin Parkway to see the Pontiff, the Philadelphia Fire Department had a total projected cost of over $4 million for fire and EMS services. Since the Kenyan scenario will be unique if going by the itinerary of Pope provided through the various local media, it is paramount that the Kenyan firefighters are up to the task of ensuring safety for all as the security departments ensures there is public order during the period. Special focus should be directed to the University of Nairobi graduation square where the requiem mass will be held and special designated points with large screens which includes areas around Uhuru Park, Central Park and other major public places within the capital. In last 3 years Kenya has experienced many distress calls that led to many casualties and every time there is a public event the firefighters expects all to turnout well without a response call but this is not always the case. Therefore the role of the fighters during Pontiff visit must be clear and candid.

Role of firefighters

The first eminent role will be proactive prevention where the firefighter chief officer works closely with the organizing team to ensure that the venues where all the ceremonies and other activities are conducted are safe. This should especially be given more weight due to the fact that the Elnino rains are being experienced within Nairobi and its environs. It should also be noted that this role does not abdicate the role of the security organs whose main concern is that the areas are secure while the firefighters concern is safety. Proactive prevention does not only make the response operation better but it also stops hazardous occurrences.

The second role of the firefighters will be the duty to rescue and especially during fires during the period. The fact that it is expected that there will be minimal fires at the venues of Pope’s visit it is not paramount that there will be no fire within Nairobi environs. Therefore the fire stations and the firefighters in particular have a duty to respond to these emergencies. Statistics have shown that more fires take place during rainy seasons especially due to electrical faults and innuendos in handling electrical appliances during this period.

The third and important role will be that of response to HAZMAT incidents. The Kenyan Occupational Health and Safety Act 2007 and the Fire Risk Regulation Rules 59 of 2007 define the training and awareness of firefighters in Kenya. The first responders who are essentially the ambulance response are trained on how to handle hazardous materials and even include hazardous material specialists among its team members. During the Pope’s visit nothing should be left to chance and all the team should be ready for any eventualities and as good practice requires, the firefighter should be ready 24hrs.

The last but not least role is that of the coordination. The host firefighters, the Nairobi County Fire Brigade, have the role of coordinating operations with other metropolitan firefighters which includes Kiambu, machakos, kajiado, muranga, Nakuru among the many other counties. Without this coordination, Nairobi fire brigade alone will not have enough capacity to handle all the operations that come with a Papal visit.

In conclusion it will be important to note that an extra ordinary visit like that of the Pope should be given equally an extra ordinary response preparation both proactive and reactive by the fire departments.

BLESSINGS TO OUR CATHOLIC BROTHERS WHO ARE FIREFIGHTERS AND LIVING THE FIGHT.

 The writer is a PhD Generalist in Public Safety Service Delivery