Community requested to protect the disabled
“People with disabilities should be more cautious because of their physical limitations and less ability to react in an emergency."
Working on Fire’s General Manager in Mpumalanga, Mr Martin Bolton, has pleaded with the community to protect people living with disabilities from unwanted wild fires that could affects their lives.
He said that under the 2013 International Day for Disaster Reduction theme: “Living with Disability and Disasters” that would be celebrated on Sunday, October 13, 2013.
This year the International Day for Disaster Reduction focuses on approximately one billion people living with disabilities.
Bolton said people who live with disabilities are usually excluded in society and they become victims of the natural disasters which includes unnecessary fires that are caused by lightning, human negligence and errors.
“People with disabilities should be more cautious because of their physical limitations and less ability to react in an emergency,” he said.
He encourages the community to do fire breaks, attend community fire awareness events around their areas to protect themselves from the disaster and also be aware off all old age and people living with disabilities at their centres.
“Although they have the right to choose where they want to stay, but it is safe for those who are building their homes on mountains to do manual fire breaks around residence,” he added.
He concluded that people must not start fires without obtaining the necessary burning permit from their local fire protection associations.
WoF will play a crucial role in the entire province to educate communities in the prevention and protecting themselves from unwanted veld fires.
