Minister of State in the Ministry of Local Government & Community Development, Hon. Colin Fagan was guest speaker at the Jamaica Fire Brigade’s (JFB) 2013 Graduation Ceremony for fire firefighters.   The ceremony was held on Wednesday February 6^th, at the JFB’s training facility in Tower Isle St. Mary.

In his congratulatory speech Minister Fagan began by reminding the graduates that they were entering a career of service which is often times a hard and thankless vocation.   He spoke of the tradition of quality service of 142 year old institution that they were now a part of and of the Brigade’s drive to continually improve efficiency through the implementation of a modernization plan which includes refurbishing fire stations, expanding emergency fleet vehicles and enforcing standards of public safety among citizens. He told the graduates that they were a welcomed addition that was part and parcel of the improvement process.

The State Minister, encouraged the one hundred (100) new recruits to continually utilized what they learnt over the thirteen weeks of training regardless of the new experiences that they will have as these are “tried and proven methodologies that have been passed on to you”. He added that these training methods will prove invaluable in reducing the number of fire related deaths which currently stands at an average of forty one (41) persons annually.

He also conveyed to the graduates his confidence that their family and loved ones were proud of them and urged them to remain focus on the important things in life which include the many lives they will be saving and the countless others they will impact as firefighters.