The Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) says lack of modern logistics to effectively fight fire increased the death toll of the last year’s June 3 disaster at the Kwame Nkrumah Circle in Accra.

Speaking Wednesday on Adom FM’s “Burning Issues” programme hosted by Afia Pokua on the issues concerning lessons Ghana has learnt from the June 3 disaster that claimed over 150 lives in Accra, Deputy Public Relations Officer of the Ghana National Fire Service, Prince Billy Anaglatey said officials of the service are doing their best but lack of logistics to carry out their mandate has become a major setback.

“We were working with fire equipment but we could have saved more lives if we had equipment such as helicopter bombers and other modern equipments,” he said.

Anaglatey revealed that some firemen sustained degrees of injuries due to the high temperature of the fire due to lack of logistics to the Fire Service Personnel.

“Some of our men also got injured when we rushed to the scene to protect lives and properties because there wasn’t enough logistics” Anaglatey revealed.

A combination of floods and an explosion at a sales point of the Ghana Oil Company (GOIL) at the Kwame Nkrumah Circle last year, resulted in the death of over 150 people and motorists who had gathered at the fuel station for shelter during the heavy rains.

The floods and fire displaced several people  in Accra, most of whom have been unable to recover from the disaster.

But Anaglatey said Ghana as a nation has not learned much lessons out of what we experienced last year.

He, therefore, urged the general public to adhere to basic laws of the Accra metropolitan Assembly (AMA) to avoid reoccurrence of the disaster.

Billy Anaglatey also called on the city authorities to undertake precautionary measures in place by dredging choked gutters to avoid disasters ahead of the rain season.

On the same discussion, a former Greater Accra Regional Commander of Police and NADMO coordinator, DCOP (Retd) Douglas Akrofi Asiedu said the various Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies (MMDAs) must also deduct part of the common fund to support the activities of NADMO for disaster prevention.

He also called on the assemblies to remove all unauthorized structures on the streets of the capital and flood areas to protect lives and property.

DCOP Akrofi emphasized that policy makers must also enforce the existing laws in the country.