aki - Rijksdienst Caribisch Nederland

THE FIRE DEPARTMENT INVESTS HEAVILY IN PEOPLE AND EQUIPMENT
Andre Bennet
With year one now behind the back the brand new
Dutch Caribbean Fire Brigade is well on its way to
being formed on the Public Entities of Bonaire, St.
Eustatius and Saba with improvements already
gradually taking place within the fire brigade. Challenges
facing the brigade at the start are being worked on
and management and staff are optimistic about the
future. According to local commander Andre Benne
of the St. Eustatius Fire Brigade the aention in year
one was focused mainly on orientation and exploration.
However, the goals for the coming four years will
clearly lay out the path which the corps should follow.
“It is our objective to become more visible within the
local communities on all three islands by increasing
the collaboration between the police, ambulance
department and fire department”, according to
Benne.
Forming one brigade has not been without challenges.
On St. Eustatius firefighters were last to sign
labour agreements due to issues related to discrepancies
in job descriptions, difference in salary scales,
equipment and uniforms. Meanwhile the staff is more
seled as these maers are being dealt with to their
satisfaction. New uniforms, breathing apparatus and
jaws –of-life have been replaced. “Our breathing
GREATER AUTONOMY AND RESPONSIBILITY
New equipment and materials, new uniforms, but
also a completely new job classification system;
those are some of the benefits that the management
of the Fire Department sees aer ’10-10-10’. To start
with the laer: firefighters can now aend various
training courses. “In the past there was no money
for that”, explains the Fire Department Chief on
Bonaire, Jan Janga. “Now our people can start with
training as ‘LBO-er’, to come out as ‘HBO-er’. This
way our staff can actually grow in the organization.”
Before Bonaire became a part of the Caribbean
Netherlands, the Island Territory was responsible for
the Fire Department. This oen led to bureaucracy,
states Janga. There was no predetermined designated
budget for the Fire Department. That has
changed: The Fire Department now works with the
‘BES Fire Department Decree’. Based on that law the
Fire Department can execute many tasks itself and
this is linked to a budget. “I now have budgetary
responsibility. That means that I have more
independence but also more responsibility for the
management of the force. Janga manages a brigade
of - currently - 48 professionals.
apparatus is brand new. Some corpses in the European
Netherlands do not have this state of the art equipment”,
says Benne.
Personnel, material and training are the three main
priorities in 2012. The fire brigade on St. Eustatius and
Saba are understaffed. In order to become more
efficient and to operate shis optimally, recruitment
of new firemen and volunteer s is scheduled. Training
of the existing team and new staff on all levels is vitally
important. And so in 2012 there are plans to have
introductory training for new recruits, and further
training of shi leaders and management. Additionally,
each quarter the fire brigade on all three islands
will go into the community where together with the
police and ambulance departments more joint
training will be conducted among the multi disciplinary
units. Vehicles will also be replaced.
Before 10-10-10 there were three separate brigades.
According to Benne, “A new joint brigade comes with
several benefits. The management of St. Eustatius and
Saba’s fire departments can now rely on their
colleagues on Bonaire until a more permanent
solution is found for staffing issues”. St. Eustatius
intends to assist Saba with one worker to rotate on a
week basis. There are plans for the officers team to be
trained in the UK where the Netherlands sends their
firemen. Globally the UK offers one of the most
extensive and comprehensive training possibilities.
Ultimately, it is the goal of Dutch Caribbean Fire
Brigade to serve as one brigade and to become model
brigade for the entire Kingdom.
Jan Janga
Besides training it is important for them, and of
course for the population, that they have good
equipment. For example in the past year a new crash
tender was bought, a vehicle that can be used at
various calamities, primarily at the airport. That is
the first step in the upgrading of our fleet. Also, new
uniforms were ordered and there was a substantial
investment in replacing the outdated and rejected
‘A SAFE, VEILIG AND SIGUR 2012’
Aer the incorporation as of 10-10-10, 2011 was
the starting year for the Dutch Caribbean Fire
Brigade with room for orientation and exploration.
In 2012, we continue working on a modern
fire brigade that is jointly prepared for risks
specific to the islands of Bonaire, St. Eustatius
and Saba. On behalf of the Dutch Caribbean Fire
Brigade I wish the people of Bonaire, St. Eustatius
and Saba above all a ‘safe, veilig and sigur 2012’.
Jair Tromp
General Commander of the Dutch Caribbean Fire Brigade
self contained breathing apparatus. That currently is
so modern that even the Netherlands cannot match
it. The Fire Department on Bonaire has three crash
tenders for the airport and three fire engines for
Kralendijk. A plan has been made for the period up
to 2015. So there will be a new fire engine for Rincon
and the intention is to purchase yet another rescue
vehicle that can be used in car accidents within the
next two years. In time, the other two crash tenders
will also be replaced. All in all this is ‘substantial
capital’ as Janga calls it. But more is about to change,
he announces in advance. Especially when it comes
to laws and regulations, and compliance with them.
But that will be gradually. “People must get the
opportunity to get used to new rules. In five years
time we want to be prepared to enforce the new law
and regulations so then everything will be up to
standard aerwards . “And that is about time if you
consider that for example the Fire Works Ordinance
dates back to 1903/1904. A lot is about to change. But
we are going to do that step by step for the wellbeing
of the people.”