Hotel staff gear up to fight flames

Dousing the flames at the Coco de Mer

Safety at Praslin's Coco de Mer has been further enhanced after 72 of the hotel's staff took part in a recent fire safety training programme.

Conducted by fire officers Patrick Payet and Ivans Robert, the three hour training course equipped the staff with rudimentary skills in fire fighting and the knowledge of what to do should a more serious blaze break out.

"The aim of the course was to equip the staff with sufficient knowledge of fire safety," said Doreen D'Soysa, human resources manager of the hotel.

The three hour training covered how a fire starts, the do's and don't's of tackling a blaze, the evacuation of buildings and instruction on how to extinguish fires.

The training has further boosted safety at the hotel which last year benefitted from a three day first aid training programme which was attended by 30 members of staff.

"The objective of such training is to create a safe environment and make the staff aware of the actions they should take (in the event of a fire)," said Ms D'Soysa.

"Now they are equipped with the knowledge and confidence of what to do and how to fight a fire they could make a difference," she said, adding that fire services on Praslin are limited.

At present the island's residents rely on officers from the airport brigade to deal with building blazes, while fires in wooded areas are tackled by staff from the Ministry of Environment and Natural Resources Forestry Division who operate a Land Rover equipped with pumping gear and other fire fighting tools.

Chief Fire Officer Eddie Payette said that he feels that there is a need to have a fire station on Praslin, due to the recent increase in buildings there, notably those related to tourism.

Chair of the Praslin Development Fund (PDF) Michel Gardette confirmed that, despite a government announcement that money would be allocated in early 2003, there are still no concrete plans to construct a fire station on Praslin, due to a shortage of funds and difficulty in securing building materials.

He did say, however, that the proposed station is likely to be constructed on the reclaimed land at Baie Ste. Anne, from where it would be better able to send assistance to La Digue.

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