The entire strength of Fire and Rescue Service personnel will be required to be on duty for five days during Deepavali festival. The personnel have been asked not to avail themselves of leave on the five days, official sources said.
The department has a strength of 115 personnel and drivers manning 10 fire stations, and 13 fire tenders, and other necessary paraphernalia to attend to emergencies.
All have received training on responding to possible danger situations during the North-East monsoon, Assistant District Fire Officer Saravanan said.
The latest addition has been the fire station at Chennimalai. While the number of stations and the extent of fire-fighting equipment are sufficient, the manpower accounts for less than two-third of the sanctioned strength. There are as many as 83 vacancies to be filled.
Deploying the existing strength to the fullest extent, the Department has completed conduct of taluk-level demonstration of fire safety practices and rescue methodologies in danger situations for the benefit of school and college students.
While fire-fighting operations are few and far in between, the complaints of people, particularly students, drowning in water bodies and courses during week-ends and holidays keeps the personnel at tenterhooks.
