Averting farm fires

As summer has begun with rising temperatures, reports of fire incidents also started pouring in. Incidents of fire are reported in vehicles, homes, factories and warehouses. Besides them are farm fires that cause concern for everyone. Fires result in human and material losses, as they are not controlled all the time despite the best efforts of authorities.

Farm fires are one of the types that the Civil Defence and Ambulance Authority (CDAA) frequently deals with, especially during summer. According to the authorities’ latest statistics, 873 reports related to farm fires, agricultural waste and weeds were dealt with during 2021, compared to 849 reports in 2020.

Failure to follow safety guidelines is a major reason behind farm fires. The authorities call on farmers to follow safety guidelines, including keeping fertilisers and pesticides at designated places and avoiding direct sunlight, disposing of cigarette butts in a safe place and away from highly flammable materials, disposing of agricultural waste by safe methods, not setting fire for cooking and barbecuing near trees or grass and making sure it is extinguished before leaving the place, monitoring children and not leaving sources of ignition in their hands, cooperating with the competent authorities in finding easy and wide ways for the arrival of civil defence and ambulance equipment and mechanisms while responding to reports.

Another reason is the abandonment of farms and using them as places to practice some wrong behaviours. The CDAA carries out awareness programmes in various governorates to reduce fire cases. Yet, the best course of action is to eliminate the causes of these fires and follow the advice and instructions. Taking precautions is the best way to avoid a fire incident.

In the event of a fire on a farm, the Civil Defence and Ambulance Authority advises direct call on emergency number 9999 or the authority’s operations centre at 24343666. It said in a bulletin that one should try to extinguish the fire with the available tools and prevent as much as possible from the fire reaching the nearby grasses, trees and farms. Also it is advisable to ask for help from the workers in the neighbouring farms until the arrival of firefighters to deal with the situation.

The fire service is one of the most important services provided by the authority to deal with all types of fire incidents through trained firefighting teams, in addition to the use of modern equipment and devices to protect lives and property.

The CDAA was established in accordance with Royal Decree No 3/2013 issued on January 8, 2013, and aims to provide services related to civil protection, firefighting, search and rescue, ambulance, and dealing with accidents of dangerous materials.

It sought to provide its centres in all governorates of the Sultanate of Oman with many rescue devices and equipment with high technologies and specifications to keep pace with the rapid development growth in the Sultanate of Oman.

It also introduced many vehicles, cranes, hydraulic ladders, and modern equipment that contributed to land rescue operations in traffic accidents, rescue from high buildings and the expulsion of those trapped in them and those stuck in electric elevators and other rescue operations. Specialised teams were provided with the vehicles necessary to complete their work tasks to the fullest.

Through its trained and qualified cadres, it undertakes to provide its services of firefighting, ground rescue, water rescue, search and rescue, dealing with accidents of hazardous materials, ambulance services, and civil protection services with high professionalism and competence.