As the government continues to invest in the country’s main airport to ensure it becomes in line with international standards, plans are in steam to establish a new Fire Service outpost to improve emergency response times.
The Home Affairs Ministry has revealed that this new outpost at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA), will be in a hangar south of the London Army Base.
Home Affairs Minister, Robeson Benn, accompanied by the Chief Fire Officer, Gregory Wickham and a team on Monday visited and inspected the hangar and its access routes.
Benn, during an interview with Guyana Times, explained that that the International Civil Aviation Organisation is currently conducting an audit of the airport, and the lack of adequate fire response was highlighted.
The minister explained that with the longer runway, it means crash tenders have a greater distance to cover, and this situation was not meeting international standards.
Home Affairs Minister Robeson Benn and Fire Chief Gregory Wickham
“There are audits ongoing which, after a number of years you get an audit, and we have to ensure that we reach international standards in respect of the audits, the International Civil Aviation Authority. We are doing just that, making sure that we meet the required standards”, Benn said.
To address this, the new outpost will serve as an auxiliary positioning for the crash tenders. Minister Benn also highlighted maintenance issues with the crash tenders, noting that CJIA has four tenders—three for aircraft fires and one for structural fires.
In a statement, the ministry has assured that this move is part of the government’s commitment to safety and emergency preparedness, ensuring robust fire and rescue services to support the expanded airport infrastructure.
The Public Works Ministry has been allocated $1.1 billion this year to continue upgrades on the CJIA, with an additional $445 million now being allocated for the ‘Rehabilitation of Taxiway Charlie – Phase 1’. This project, which involves refurbishing a taxiway that connects runways to other airport facilities, will be conducted through a National Competitive Bidding procedure. (G9)
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