The City of Johannesburg’s Emergency Management Services (EMS) took its annual winter safety campaign to different informal settlements in Soweto including Protea South and Kliptown.
EMS Spokesperson Robert Mulaudzi said the City was always ready to help keep residents out of harm’s way, especially during the cold winter season when they use all means at their disposal, some of which are unsafe, to keep warm.
He said the EMS, through its Public Information, Education, and Relations (PIER) safety campaign, focused on safe energy sources and safety in the homes.
“The recipients of the Jozi safety kits have already been trained in basic firefighting and First Aid with the aim of enabling them to deal with some of the emergencies before we as professionals arrive on the scene.
“This is part of our initiative of building resilient communities capable of dealing with any emergency that might occur. It is our endeavour to reduce fire incidents and fatalities caused by the unsafe use of heating and lighting appliances in our communities, especially in the 189 informal settlements,” he said.
Mulaudzi said since the beginning of June EMS had handed out 1 000 Jozi safety kits to different informal settlements.
“All the safety kits we handed out included: para-safe stove that cuts off the flame when there is excessive movement; Burns unit to treat minor burns; Solar lantern light; Paraffin container with a safety cap;
“We also handed out Smoke detector; Fire retard spray.”
Mulaudzi said as a result of the annual winter safety campaign, the number of fire-related fatalities was going down.
