The Fire Service has responded to reports and criticism over its handling of a fire on Moses Avenue in San Juan on May 9th 2024.

Several dogs died and four families were left homeless, with reports stating that a lack of water had hampered fire fighting efforts.

The TTFS says two trucks from the Morvant and Tunapuna Stations arrived at the scene around the same time, carrying an initial supply of 13,500 litres of water, which is was considered adequate given the nature and location of the fire.

It says the San Juan Fire Station crew was initially attending to another fire in Maracas, St. Joseph, but later arrived at Moses Avenue, bringing an additional amount of water.

The TTFS also dismissed one claim that fire officers had to share two pieces of breathing apparatus during the incident as being “simply untrue!!”.

Instead, it says “The TTFS confirms that two firefighters used breathing apparatus sets during the operation to enter the building. It is standard protocol that fire officers are rotated in and out of the actual fire zone, during an operation; and all breathing apparatus must be sanitised before they are redeployed. This process may have been observed and interpreted misleadingly.”

The Service also contends that there were no “changed shifts” during the effort.

Instead, it says one officer withdrew during the response after beginning to feel unwell.

It adds that “his state of unwell had nothing to do with the fire”.