The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has urged filling station owners to provide fire safety measures to guard against fire outbreaks and unnecessary loss of lives and property.

The chairman of IPMAN, Enugu depot unit, Chinedu Anyaso, made the call on Sunday in Enugu while speaking on the need to check fire outbreaks, especially in the oil and gas sector.

The Enugu depot unit of IPMAN covers marketers in Anambra, Ebonyi and Enugu, and parts of Abia, Imo, Kogi and Cross River States.

Mr Anyaso said that his unit had mandated each petroleum product outlet to have ready-to-use fire extinguishers and buckets of sands before commencement of operation each day.

He said that each filling station must also have a sticker indicating “No Phone Calls, Please” and a phone number or phone code of the nearest fire fighting/service station.

He said that his unit is also partnering with the Federal Fire Service on a seminar to educate the members and their filling stations’ attendants on how to use and handle fire extinguishers.

“The training includes how to ensure that the contents of the fire extinguishers do not leak due to poor handling and storage as well as to know when a fire extinguisher expires.

“They will also be exposed to other necessary things to implement in case of a fire incident within a filling station.

“We recorded a fire incident in a filling station outlet in a remote area of the state caused by answering a phone call close to a pump nozzle dispensing fuel in a filling station in January,” he said.

According to Mr Anyaso, fire incidents in any filling station outlet and other places lead to huge losses.

The IPMAN chairman also called on the members to be cautious of the atmospheric temperature before offloading products from trucks or tankers.

“Petroleum products should be dispensed in the morning or evening hours when the intensity of the sun and weather is low,” he said.

(NAN)