Bush fires increased by a whopping 81.1 percent in 2023 resulting in the Jamaica Fire Brigade (JFB) receiving a total of 6,443 calls relating to these types of fires last year, when compared to the 3,518 that were received in 2022.
Commissioner of the JFB, Stewart Beckford, said there was also a significant increase in cultivated farmland fires and electrical equipment fires. Firefighters responded to more than 20,000 emergency calls in Jamaica overall last year.
“We saw increases in almost all areas of response. In 2023, we received and responded to 20,152 calls – the highest call count we witnessed in the last seven years,” said Commissioner Beckford.
Of the total number of calls received, 11,389 were genuine fire calls, 1,413 were malicious false alarms, 1,120 were motor-vehicle accidents, and 3,806 were emergency medical services.
Commissioner Beckford had stated last March that firefighters were responding to far more bush fires than in previous years. Last February, for example, firefighters responded to 1,303 reports of bush fires, which represented a 224 percent increase over the 402 recorded about the same time in 2022. He blamed the surge in numbers on the persistent drought conditions that were plaguing the island.
He said the bush fires were putting a strain on JFB resources.
“I want to…urge farmers to desist from using the slash and burn technique. If you have to burn, it’s best that you do so as late as possible in the afternoon or in the evening, when it’s much cooler, and there may be less breeze around,” he said during a JIS interview last year.
The Commissioner also encouraged farmers to create firebreaks (a strip of open space or gap in vegetation) to prevent fires from spreading. He revealed that efforts were being made to acquire drones to aid firefighting efforts.
“If you look across the hillside and see what’s happening, in terms of the drought and the number of bush fires that we are having to respond to, these aerial equipment are very critical in allowing us to do surveillance,” he indicated. Currently, the Fire Brigade enlists the Jamaica Defence Force’s (JDF) services to do flyovers.
“This allows for a higher reach. We can go up in the hills and do surveillance in terms of search and rescue operations and damage assessments. It also allows accessibility to certain areas that we may not necessarily be able to access on foot,” Commissioner Beckford pointed out.
“The three most active divisions across the Fire Brigade in 2023 were St. Catherine, which received and responded to 3,470 emergency calls, an increase of 45 percent or 1,085; Kingston and St. Andrew [with] 3,378 emergency calls, representing a 28.9 percent increase or 758 [calls], and St. James [with] 2,490, representing the largest overall increase, that of 81.3 percent or 1,117 emergency calls.”