AN EXPOSITION at Emancipation Park in New Kingston and community walk-throughs are to form part of the activities being carried out by the Jamaica Fire Brigade (JFB) in Kingston to observe Fire Safety Awareness Week, which started on Saturday and ends on November 2.

This was disclosed by Nicholas Ogilvie, district officer of the Kingston and St Andrew Fire Prevention Division.

He said the aim was to engage as many citizens of Kingston as possible.

"We'll be going out into the downtown communities, doing a series of workshops, evacuation drills ... just to get the public embracing what we're focusing on for Fire Safety Awareness Week," he said.

Ogilvie said the community walk-throughs are an important strategy in the brigade's effort to reduce incidents of fire, and provide an opportunity to know the communities better, interact with the residents, and help homeowners and business operators to identify potential areas of concern. The York Park Fire Station will be the centre of operations for the Kingston region.

Deputy Superintendent Floyd McLean also underscored the importance of the community intervention, noting that it was critical to the preservation of people's investments and livelihoods.

"What we do when we go in is to look at electrical wiring, talk to householders and allow them to recognise bad practices in the homes [or business] that have been having the brigade all over the place and help them work out the solution to those bad practices," he said.

Ogilvie disclosed that there is a full slate of events planned for the week to highlight Kingston and St Andrew's participation in Fire Awareness Week.

"We'll be doing a series of workshops and evacuation drills, hosting a community health fair at York Park Fire Station," said Ogilvie.