THE Commission on Audit has called the attention of the Bureau of Fire Protection on the shortage of firetrucks and lack of firefighting equipment and protective helmets, boots and gloves.
COA said that as of December 2017, there were only 2,350 “serviceable firetrucks” available on call in case of an emergency and only 1,958 of them were owned by the BFP. The rest are maintained by local government units.
Based on the Government Accounting Manual, the estimated useful life of one firetruck was five to 15 years only. The newest firetrucks in BFP’s fleet were bought in 2014, COA added.
“Review of the BFP’s acquisition of fire trucks and PPEs (personnel protective equipment) disclosed that the agency has not procured firetrucks and equipment for a number of years. The latest acquisition of firetrucks was made in 2014,” CoA said.
A breakdown of available fire engines showed government firefighters are still using at least eight that were acquired between 1950 and 1959 which makes them at least 59 years old.
“Aside from the shortage, it is observed from the report of the Bureau that 1,094 or 39.3 percent of firetrucks nationwide were acquired during the years 1950 to 1999 aging 18 to 67 years old,” the report read.
“From the auditors’ viewpoint, utilizing old firetrucks incur higher cost of major repairs and maintenance, not to mention the dangers it could possibly cause to both residents and firefighters.”
Since 2010, only 912 new firetrucks have been acquired and put into service.
As of 2017, the BFP has 23,030 uniformed personnel performing firefighting operations nationwide but only a little over half have basic protective gear like fire helmets (only 12,718), fire-resistant gloves (12,357 pairs), and fireman’s boots (11,456 pairs).