BFP spokesperson Supt. Annalee Atienza (Screengrab from PTV)
MANILA – The Bureau of Fire Protection (BFP) on Monday said the more than PHP2 billion in funds released by the Department of Budget and Management (DBM) would help build fire stations and provide firetrucks in towns across the country that still do not have these facilities.
"This is a big help definitely for our agency because up to now, actually as of April 2024, there are 110 municipalities that have no firetrucks and fire stations. This is among the BFP's priorities," BFP spokesperson Fire Supt. Annalee Atienza said in a Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon briefing.
She said the agency's bids and awards committee is now speeding up the procurement process for these facilities.
Aside from fire trucks, Atienza said included in the procurement are personal protective equipment for firefighters in these areas.
With the onset of the rainy season, Atienza said the BFP will be embarking on an information campaign to raise awareness among the public on fire prevention.
She said rains can also trigger electrical ignition which is also a leading cause of fires.
She added a total of 10,996 fire incidents across the country were recorded from Jan. 1 to June 10 this year, higher than 8,182 incidents logged in the same period last year.
A total of 178 deaths were recorded, up from 147 in the same period last year.
The number of injured persons also climbed to 588 from 526 last year.
"It's unfortunate that we had a 34.4 percent increase in fire incidents. This is nationwide and the majority of these fires occurred in residential occupancies," Atienza said.
She said the top three causes of fires were open flame from rubbish fires, smoking, and open flame from farmlands. (PNA)
