A Guam Visitors Bureau committee is calling for a new Guam Fire Department rescue base in the tourist district of Tumon for faster response time that could help save lives. GVBโs Destination Management/Visitor Safety and Satisfaction Committee, during its Sept. 11 meeting, said a Tumon rescue base for GFD is long overdue.
In 2019, GFD was asked to temporarily stage its rescue unit at Matapang Beach Park and incidentally, completed a rescue in under five minutes, โfrom the time they got the call to the time they got rescued to the time they got back to shore,โ according to GFD battalion chief Roderick Meno. In the years since, GFD has struggled to maintain an adequate response time, having to respond to Tumon emergencies from neighboring villages. โGFD does not have a presence in our tourism hub,โ Meno said. โOur units respond from the Tamuning and Dededo fire stations, specifically the rescue unit at Dededo because of the accommodations that they can provide for our watercraft and other specialties.โ
Meno said if thereโs an incident in Tumon Bay, it takes between 12 and 16 minutes to respond, depending on traffic, and then maybe five more minutes to deploy. He added that โtime is not on our side,โ and the risk for people during that timeframe or any longer is highly likely to become โnot a rescue [but] recovery.โ Sinajana Mayor Robert Hofmann, chair for GVBโs Destination Management/Visitor Safety and Satisfaction Committee, said GFD and the Guam Police Department are โaggressively trying to resolveโ this matter and โitโs a work in progress.โ GPD, he said, recently restarted the beach patrol. โI know that Parks and Rec said they lost a lifeguard, but also we were able to add two additional lifeguards, who will start tomorrow from the VSO program. Everyone is figuring out whoโs going to do what, whoโs going to cover what, whatโs best for each of these agencies, and how or when they can pay for what equipment is needed,โ Hofmann said.
