Foreigners called in

He made this disclosure at yesterday’s post-cabinet media conference. Joseph criticised the reports of the Fire Services and the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) on the emergency.

Joseph lambasted "the quality of the reports, the sometimes contradictory information presented, the blame-laying approach, the absence of systematic recommendations for long-term improvement outside of the usual cry for more financial resources, and the continued inability of the agencies to coordinate their responses in disaster situations."

As a result, said Joseph, he had hired management consultant Lennox H Sealy and Associates to determine where lay accountability.

"The major findings of the report confirmed the fact that the laws of Trinidad and Tobago placed the responsibility for the supply of water for fire-fighting on the Chief Fire Officer (CFO)." He said that although there were four ways to obtain water in downtown Port-of-Spain, at the time of the fire only one option was available. He also disclosed that at the fire, some 13 out of 41 fresh-water hydrants in Port-of-Spain were defective, while others could not be accessed.

He said that while Sealy’s report could not conclusively determine the cause of the fire, the CFO’s report suggested it was due to an "accidental fault originating in a makeshift system used to recharge car batteries by a certain category of vendor."

Joseph continued: "The on-site management of the fire did not appear effective as it would have required more significant technical oversight, as well as tight coordination among agencies. The aggressive team approach to attacking the fire was not evident. The slightly differing accounts of the situation by the two agencies in important areas also suggested some absence of coordination or at least collaboration."

Joseph said the Sealy Report was critical of both the Fire Services and Wasa, particularly their inability to respond appropriately to a major fire in downtown Port-of-Spain, especially after the "never again" assurances given to the population after the fire at Excellent City Mall four years before.

Joseph said that while he agreed with some of the recommendations of the Sealy Report, he also wanted another investigation to be done.

"The minister proposed the establishment of a two-member expert team of retired chief fire officers — one from Jamaica and the other from the United States — to undertake an in-depth, expert study, a technical evaluation of the report," he said, adding that Cabinet agreed.

he said the team would do a technical evaluation of the Sealey Report and an analytical review of the reports of the Fire Services and Wasa.

The duo would, within three months, give the minister a report on its assessment of the Fire Services including its managerial and technical competencies, operating systems, and manpower needs.

meanwhile, Joseph said measures had been put in place to correct any weaknesses already identified by the Sealy Report.