Mossel Bay Municipality Fire, Rescue, and Disaster Management Services today became the first local authority in the Garden Route to put into operation a complete field incident command vehicle.
The unit, consisting of two custom-fitted vehicles and two specialised tents, offers the Fire, Rescue, and Disaster Management Services the flexibility to take incident command and functionality to the scene of any major fire or disaster.
“Typically, this unit will be deployed to fires such as the extensive vegetation fire Mossel Bay experienced in the Dana Bay area in December 2016. It offers the firefighters and officers commanding a fully-fledged command centre with facilities that track the weather and other information necessary to inform command decisions, and comes fitted with the necessary radio control, computer and camera facilities. The unit transports all the equipment necessary for the management of an incident to the scene. It frees the firefighting vehicles to do what they need to do at the scene – to mitigate (fight) the emergency,” Chief Joseph Johnston said as he received the keys to the command vehicle from Marlu Rust, the assistant director Provincial Fire Services.
The HAZMAT(Hazardous Materials)/SCBA(Self Contained Breathing Apparatus) unit is a dual purpose operational vehicle fitted with equipment to deal with incidents of a specialised nature. This affords the emergency services teams the equipment necessary to safely attend to incidents involving hazardous substances and the risks associated with them in an emergency. It provides the required resources on the scene of the emergency while providing for the safety considerations for the high-risk incidents.
The unit offers a full decontamination facility with all the necessary equipment. Portable decontamination units make the hazmat scene safer by providing immediate care for entry teams and victims when needed.
“We are very thankful for the support from the Western Cape Provincial Government for their financial contribution towards the unit. The facility affords Mossel Bay Municipality the best available technology to professionally manage emergencies in the greater Mossel Bay,” director of community services, Elize Nel said.
Portfolio Chairperson of Community Services, Councillor Niklaas Booisen said he was most impressed with the range of equipment included in the unit. “This will allow our emergency services to provide an even more effective service to our community,” Councillor Booisen said as he congratulated Chief Johnston with the acquisition.
Mossel Bay Municipality procured the command unit that offers the joint operations centre (JOC) for a combined approach in effectively managing all emergency personnel in an emergency.