NEMO Receives Donation from USAID to Fight Wildfires

Also in Belmopan earlier today, the National Emergency Management Organization received a donation of equipment from the United States Embassy to be used in fighting wildfires across the country.  On hand to receive the items was NEMO Coordinator, Daniel Mendez. 

 

 

Daniel Mendez, Coordinator, NEMO

“This donation was received from the U.S. Embassy through USAID.  This equipment is firefighting equipment that we will be issuing, that we will be sending out to work in the communities.  These include water tanks, they include pumps and hoses in order for us to provide faster access to water for the firefighting equipment.  There are also small machineries such as trimmers and chainsaws which will be needed to continue that work of clearing fire paths around affected areas in each of the villages.  So a significant amount will be going to Toledo.  As you may be aware that there has been significant flare ups of fires there and this is where that help is needed.  We will also mobilize other units to other parts of the country in anticipation of more fires. The general outlook for weather doesn‘t look promising for us.  We don‘t anticipate rain for another few days which means that the risk of fire still remains high.  So we remain on alert.  Teams have been deployed from all over, so the Belize Defense Force has mobilized.  We have villagers working alongside the different ministries.  The Ministry of Infrastructure Development is working with bulldozers creating fire paths.  We also have other N.G.O.s who have been contributing, so it‘s really a big effort in really trying to control all of these fires across the country.  The efforts continue, we continue to work and we monitor these day and night and our teams have been out going up to two weeks now.  So it‘s been a big operation and hopefully, we‘re able to soon when the rains come.”