Bajan Fire Fighters Blog

The Barbados Association of Retired Fire Officers (BARFO) held its installation ceremony for Officers and Executive Committee members on Saturday at the Hildegarde Weekes Activity Centre in Eden Lodge, St. Michael. The officers are President Keith Ward, Vice President Neal Smithwick, Secretary Michael Lowe, Treasurer Velmo Cadogan, Assistant Secretary Treasurer Charles Holligan, Public Relations Officer Wilfred Marshall, Chairman Fundraising Committee, Arlington Kellman and Chairperson Health & Welfare Committee Ena Gittens. The feature address was delivered by acting Chief Fire Officer Errol Maynard, with remarks from President of the Barbados Fire Service Sports and Social Club Clarence Hinds. (Image: BFF/TG)

The Barbados Association of Guidance Counselors (BAGC) annual National Career Showcase was held at the University of the West Indies (UWI), Cave Hill Campus during the past two days. The event gave thousands of secondary school students the opportunity to examine some of their options for potential careers. This year marked the 10th edition of the annual showcase and personnel from the Barbados Fire Service were once again in attendance and happy to interact with students. The students were exposed to the different aspects of a fire service career and had the opportunity to try on firefighting gear and also ask questions regarding the requirements to enlist in the fire department. The 2015 showcase was put on by the BAGC in conjunction with UWI and welcomed students from 22 secondary schools. We extend heartfelt thanks to President of the Barbados Association of Guidance Counselors, Janice Jemmott for the invitation to participate.

The Barbados Fire Service may be experiencing a manpower drain but it is flooded with applications from people eager to join the service. Acting Chief Fire Officer Randolph Cox told the DAILY NATION that it was proving to be a challenge to respond to the many applications which they receive almost on a daily basis. "We are bombarded . . . actually swamped. There is no shortage of people who want to join the service and our civilian staff are hardpressed to acknowledge all of the applications," he said. Only last Friday, Cox lamented that the service had lost five senior officers in the last 15 months and this had led to a gap in experience in the department. But he said both men and women were lining up to join the service and he expected that some would be hired when the new fire station at Six Roads, St Philip, was built. However, it seems that temporary fire officers are peeved that four years after joining the service they are still acting. The officers complained that th...