“It means a lot for 20 young people to receive such an important training and to go back home to transfer the knowledge to others, it is so beneficial for the country. The benefit is that we have come from a point where we did not have these skills we have acquired and we have had challenges, but now we have the technical know-how to counter fire disasters,” Mohamed Abdullahi, the groups team leader added.
The AMISOM United Nations Trust Fund has helped train the first ever professional Somalia firefighters outside the Horn of African country after 20 young members of the Somalia Emergency and Rescue Team took part in a two week long high level training in Kenya as part of the ongoing efforts to restore peace and stability in war-ravaged Somalia.
Just like other national institutions, the Somalia Fire and Emergency Rescue Unit premises and equipment’s in Mogadishu were looted and property destroyed by unknown assailants during the last 20 years of civil unrest in Somalia.
With the help of the Somalia government, international partners and AMISOM, the unit is slowly being resuscitated by giving them the necessary expertise and tools they require to prevent fire and respond to any other emergency disasters.
The training in Nairobi was overseen by experienced fire fighters from the Kenya Airports Authority (KAA) with class-based theory lessons as well as practical fire-fighting techniques on how to attack airport fire which was held at an open field in the busy Jomo Kenya International Airport as planes landed and flew away during the fire drill.
“Airport Fire Fighting is a bit advanced, it is more technical because you have to deal with an aircraft with passengers on board and there is a lot of fuel and it is moving. So when it touches down, they you expect a lot of problems. And the fire is abrupt, it builds up very fast and people can inhale toxic gasses from within or even hot air,” Francis Ndeleva, one of the KAA Fire and Rescue Instructors said.
MOGADISHU CAN SLEEP IN PEACE
Talking of hot air and toxic fumes, some of the Somali trainees experienced near fatal incident in the last fire they tried to put off in Mogadishu in September last year prior to getting any training after several firefighters became unconscious from inhaling toxic form they were using to extinguish a fire caused by burning fuel at a petrol station.
At the time, they said they were not aware inhaling form was toxic.
But now that they have been equipped with the necessary knowledge and hopefully with the right gear, they are ready to face off any challenges and a raring to go.
“Several of our colleagues collapsed last year when we were still new to this risky but crucial job of being a firefighter. We are so glad to AMISOM, our government and the UN for sending us for the first ever training outside Somalia. We are happy to return home with a new set of skills and the public in Mogadishu can now peacefully sleep since we are ready to save their lives anytime,” Mohamed Sahal, Co-ordinator of the Somalia Emergency Rescue and Fire Fighters said after safely landing back home.
During their hands-on training in Nairobi, the trainers chose a perfect spot at the airport for the young Somali fire fighter next to a rusty but symbolic former Somalia air force military plane used by former Somalia President Mohamed Siyad Bare to flee the civil war in Somalia in early 1991.
As if the presence of their former plane gave them a gusto to do even better, the young Somali trainers extinguished a fire lit for them as part of training and showed their first aid techniques they have learnt by attending to dummies and some of their colleagues mimicking victims strategically placed inside and outside the rusty Somalia military cargo plane.
“It means a lot for 20 young people to receive such an important training and to go back home to transfer the knowledge to others, it is so beneficial for the country. The benefit is that we have come from a point where we did not have these skills we have acquired and we have had challenges, but now we have the technical know-how to counter fire disasters,” Mohamed Abdullahi, the groups team leader added.
