THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: It was exactly 9.15 am on Friday when the Fire and Rescue Service station at Chengalchoola received the call alerting them that the huge Neem tree that stood on the footpath in front of the Secretariat had uprooted and was leaning dangerously over the electric lines that ran along the road. It was a weekday morning, government offices and banks were located nearby, schools had also reopened and the traffic was already heavy. Hardly five minutes later, a team of ten Fire and Rescue personnel rushed to the spot with their tools, a chainsaw and two portable power saws. 'Is that all?' wondered the crowd that gathered in the area to see how the personnel would remove the giant trunk. District Collector Dinesh Arora was also among those who were skeptical about the efficiency of the rescue team. But to everyone’s surprise, the team, led by Station Officer Suvi M S, completed the task at such a speed that vehicular traffic along the road was restored within an hour. Even the Collector was impressed with their performance that he lauded their efficiency before the gathering.But soon, the Collector learned that the credit must go to the will-power and agility of the team members rather than the efficiency of the equipment. For, the department was facing an acute shortage of necessary equipment and tools. The team did not hide this fact from the Collector. Even though new tools were provided for the Fire and Rescue units in the district last year, they were insufficient, being divided among all the units. Learning this, the Collector directed the personnel to give a list of equipment they lacked, so that he could provide them, the expenses of which can be met with the money in the Collector’s fund. The Collector even organised a function to felicitate the team members, but the duty-bound officials graciously declined the offer and rushed to Technopark, from where they received another emergency call.
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