By Nancy Nais
KUCHING, March 18: Sarawak Fire and Rescue Department (Bomba) personnel recently joined a beach cleaning and community event at Telok Melano in Lundu.
Over 50 senior officers from headquarters spent 3-days, 2-nights there as part of their their ‘Sehati Sejiwa Seerat Serasa’ initiative.
“The event was not only to strengthen the department’s working comradeship but also to work together with the Telok Melano Bomba community and local residents, which can make a difference in society.
“The team’s work will not only boost the neighbourhood’s pride but the cleanup and beautification efforts also mean ‘a litter-free flower bed is not just a pretty sight, it is a sign of a community that cares’,” said state director Khirudin Drahman matter-of-factly.
Apart from reducing litter, he added that the beach cleanup could protect the ocean and raise awareness about litter and plastic pollution.
“It is a fun and easy way to volunteer and engage with our mission to protect our beaches,” he added.
The state Bomba is also aiming to break down barriers and improve public perception of firefighters and rescue personnel by reaching out to the community with an open-door policy.
Khirudin had emphasised the need to change the way the public sees Bomba, as it would have an impact on the whole Sarawak team.
The department is taking a people-approach in their programmes to provide interactive experiences and engagement with the community so that they would have a better idea of the main duties of full-time firefighters.
During the event, Bomba handed fire extinguishers to Telok Melano village head Amezan Abu Hassan.
“We formed the Bomba komuniti Telok Melano on Nov 2017. So this year, we included them in the public beach cleaning activity and, at the same time, handed over six fire extinguishers for the community through their village head,” said Khirudin.
The `Sehati Sejiwa Seerat Serasa’ programme is also one of the best options for ‘fire point’, where Khirudin felt that their presence would help the community prepare and study for the Incident Action Plan (IAP). — DayakDaily
