In response to alarming figures, the Jamaica Fire Brigade is launching an intense community-based education programme, the hope of making citizens more aware of what they can do to save their lives and property.

A total of 17 persons, including four children, have lost their lives in fires so far this year. Of the 13 adults that have been killed, seven perished in the month of April and the fire brigade has received a total of 5,086 fire calls islandwide.

Assistant Superintendent James Lee from the fire Prevention Unit, who is in charge of Kingston and St.Andrew, told THE STAR: "Right now, we're going into community fire safety. We want to make people aware of the dangers and prevent them from doing careless things like storing flammable liquid in breakable bottles, doing illegal connections and using one extension with several appliances."

The number of fatalities so far is slightly higher than last year's when nine people were killed between January and March. While the majority of the reported fires are bush fires, a significant number also occur in homes. Lee also revealed that "more than 50 per cent" of bush fires occurred in the parish of St. Catherine.

Asst. Superintendent Lee also added: "We will be trying to reach citizens' associations and churches. We're also going to do some devotional exercises in primary schools, where we give out some fire tips. We want to reach everybody, so this year, our focus will be on the community."