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Mrs Naana Eyiah, the Deputy Minister for the Interior, has called on Ghanaians to take issues on fire safety seriously to protect life and property.

She said just as fire outbreaks could be caused by human action and inaction, in like manner they can also be prevented.

"A case in point is the recent fire outbreak at Makola, which was met with worrying public concerns," she stated.

According to her, one of such concerns is the complete disregard for fire safety education and warning messages being given to the public by the Ghana National Fire Service.

Mrs Eyiah made the call at the passing out ceremony of Recruit Course 52C on Friday, the 13th of August in Accra.

She said this was a reminder of the harmful effects of fire outbreaks on private lives and the socio economic development of the country.

According to statistics, a total of 3,301 fire outbreaks were recorded from January to June in 2021 as compared to 3,870 for the same period in 2020.

It is widely known that, fire prevention is the first on the agenda when it comes to fire management and it is also a fact that about 96 per cent of all fire outbreaks were preventable, she added.

Mrs Eyiah, while pledging government’s continuous support, urged the GNFS to intensify fire safety education throughout the country in order to reverse the trend.

Recruit Course 52C, has a total of 537 Fire Service recruits, comprising of 252 females, and 285 males.

The Recruit Course 52C training programme commenced in November 2020.

The training was undertaken in two parts.

The first part lasted for seven weeks with a six-month break where trainees proceeded on attachment at fire stations across the country.

The Recruit Course 52C later returned to the Fire Academy Training School to complete the second part of their eleven-week training course in July 2021 and subsequently, their passing out.

In all four recruits were awarded for the overall best, best in academics, best in foot drills and the Commandant's award.