As a follow up to the March 14, 2010 Fire in Placencia Village, a meeting was held on March 18, 2010 to discuss the fire and the response of the Fire Department. In attendance were members of the Peninsula Fire Board (Co-Chairman Steve Christensen, Treasurer Harald Wallen, Secretary Greg Valiton, Fire Chief Kathy Anglin, Fire Department Captain Jim Weller, Firefighter Steve Wade, Sgt. Benguche of the Police Department, and Village Council Chairman Brian Yearwood), David from the Water Board (and a firefighter), Chief Briggs of the Belize Fire Department, Chadwick Foreman of the Independence Fire Department, and Mike Middleton of the National Fire Service. The discussion focused on the response time, coordination of the response, equipment needs, manpower needs, and what can be done to improve the availability of water for firefighting purposes. The conclusions reached included:
The fire was set accidentally in an empty building and spread very quickly due to the condition of the building and proximity of other buildings;
Firefighting efforts were hampered by the location (approximately 700 ft. from both the sea and the lagoon) and the amount of hose available not being adequate;
The fire was reported at 3:30 PM and responded to within 10 minutes;
More volunteers are needed on the Fire Department and a radio system is needed for better coordination;
Planning needs to be done to improve access to water for firefighting purposes and potential water sources need to be mapped;
On future fires, the truck needs to go to the water source first (not the fire) because the water in the tank on the truck only lasts approximately 1 minute before the tank needs to be refilled; and
In general, the response of the Fire Department was good and prevented further loss of property in a difficult area and under challenging conditions.
The National Fire Service indicated that they are committed to working with Placencia Village and Seine Bight Village on securing equipment, recruitment, and training. The Peninsula Fire Board and the Peninsula Volunteer Fire Department look forward to working with them to provide the best fire protection service possible for the Placencia Peninsula.