BFP reminder: Secure your houses before leaving this Holy Week

Amid summer vacations and getaways this Holy Week, the Bureau of Fire and Protection (BFP)-Iloilo City reminded the public to secure and thoroughly check their houses before leaving to prevent fires and dissuade criminals.

According to Senior Fire Officer 1 Jayson Gallego, Community Relations Unit chief of the Iloilo City Fire Station, the main switch inside the house must be turned off and all electrical connections must be secured and plugged out before residents go away on extended vacations.

Gallego stressed that ‘proper housekeeping’ is necessary to prevent fires and other untoward incidents.

“Sige-sige ang aton pahanumdom sa publiko nga before we leave the house, nakapatay ang tanan nga mga switch. See to it nga nakapatay ang main switch. We need to practice proper housekeeping,” he told reporters last week.

The reminder came following the consecutive fires that occurred in Iloilo City in March.

Based on the data of the BFP Iloilo City, a total of 15 fire incidents were recorded in the metro from March 1 to March 30, 2023.

In a radio interview, BFP Iloilo City Fire Marshal Chief Inspector Vencie Jojo Aldeguer said 12 of the 15 fire incidents were structural in nature. A lone casualty was recorded involving a 74-year-old female resident of Brgy. Taft North, Mandurriao.

Aldeguer said the majority of fire incidents were electrical in nature caused by faulty electrical connections and overloaded connections.

Meanwhile, the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO) also reminded the public to check the windows and locks of their houses before leaving.

Darwin Papa, head of the Quick Response Team Division Office, Emergency Operations Center of the CDRRMO also warned the residents to avoid oversharing information on social media and always check the sources. (DG)