TEAM HERALD
teamherald@herald-goa.com
MARGAO: The fire at Mobor-Cavelossim ~ a tourist hub, which plays host to starred resorts and other establishments ~ has once again brought to the fore the need for a fire station along Salcete’s coastal belt.
Located around 22 kms away from Margao, even the fire services agreed that it takes considerable time to reach the village taking into account the traffic and narrow roads. With questions of delay by the fire brigade to reach the venue doing the rounds after the fire incident, Fire Officer Gill de Souza said it takes minimum 40 minutes to cover the 22-km distance from the Margao fire station to reach Cavelossim-Mobor.
Locals who assisted in the firefighting operations said that had not the staff of Radisson Blue started the operations, the area would have been hit by a major fire disaster. An eyewitness said the fire was almost brought under control by the firefighting operations launched by Radisson Blue staff and the locals, before the fire tender made its presence felt.
A local resident Christina Fernandes said the fire incident is an eye opener for the government to set up a fire station in the coastal belt. She said that it takes a lot of time for the fire tenders to reach the village from Margao. Hope the government would look into the genuine need of the village”, she said.
Another resident Rosario Fernandes said the government should explore the possibility of stationing a fire tender at the Mobor police outpost after its inauguration.
