Firefighters who risk their lives to save others: Minister

KUWAIT: Officials attend the opening ceremony of the 16th Firemen’s Day festival yesterday. —Photos by Joseph Shagra

KUWAIT: The Kuwait Fire Service Directorate (KFSD) is holding the 16th Firemen's Day festival from March 1 - 3, 2018 at the Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Cultural Center on the Arabian Gulf Road. Deputy Prime Minister and State Minister for Cabinet Affairs Anas Al-Saleh praised the great role that firefighters play in Kuwait. "We are proud of the work of firefighters who risk their lives to save others' lives and property," he stated during the opening ceremony of the festival held yesterday. "This festival focuses on highlighting the work of firefighters and other military and civil authorities which also deal with cases of fires and accidents to save lives. This event allows the public to know more about the firefighter's job in dealing with fires, rescue, and help operations."

KFSD Director Lieutenant General Khaled Al-Mikrad said meanwhile that the purpose of celebrating this day is to express gratitude and appreciation for the hard work of all firefighters around the world. "I invite the public to come and enjoy the entertaining and awareness activities of this festival," he pointed out.

Undersecretary of Kuwait National Guard Lieutenant General Hashim Al-Rifai also attended the opening ceremony, and noted that the National Guard is participating in this festival based on the Amiri Decree which issued in 1967, and by which the authority was formed to support other public authorities and execute their demanded duties. "After 50 years, the firefighting unit at the National Guard had developed and it serves to complete the demands of KFSD, as we support them during crises and disasters. Furthermore we cooperate in trainings and communications to facilitate the work of both departments," he explained.

Deputy Director General for Development Sector and Human Resources at KFSD Major General Khaled Al-Terket stressed that the 16th Firemen's Day coincides with the World Civil Defense Day, which is celebrated by members of the International Civil Defense Organization (ICDO), which Kuwait joint in May 2015. Its slogan for this year is 'Civil Defense and National Institutions against Disasters'. KFSD will present this slogan with the 'Shamel 4' training that will be held next week, he noted.

"There are 41 fire stations all over Kuwait, in which 3490 firefighters are working, out of the total number of 4,800 who operate 444 rescue and firefighting machines and tools in addition to 41 boats," he said. "Firefighters dealt with 14,087 reports in 2017 according to the annual statistics, which includes 4,882 fire incidents, 4,880 rescues, 1,901 public service cases, and 3,216 different operations. Also, the Prevention Department at KFSD issued 26,527 prevention licenses for various purposes. In addition, inspection units issued 8,838 cautions, 670 fines, and conducted 25 administrative shutdowns of institutions which committed serious violations that cause danger on lives," concluded Terket.

By Nawara Fattahova