The National Union of Professional Firefighters filed a complaint with the General Inspectorate of Finance (IGF) against the Lisbon City Council, denouncing “serious flaws” in the management of the Sapadores Regiment, namely the lack of personal protective equipment, it was announced this Wednesday.
“There have been firefighters without personal protective equipment for four years. Many work in second- or third-hand uniforms, without helmets, without rain gear, without a coat against the cold, without flashlights”the president of the National Union of Professional Firefighters (SNBP), Sérgio Carvalho, complained to the Lusa agency.
The person in charge explained that in recent years he has been alerting the Command of the Lisbon Firefighters Regiment (RSBL) and the municipality of the “urgent need” to resolve this problem, but “without success”. “There is a huge lack of material and the regiment’s command cannot tell us what the expected delivery date of the material is, nor whether it will be available”, he pointed out.
Sérgio Carvalho explained that the use of the IGF is due to the fact that it is the entity with competence to supervise the Lisbon City Council and highlighted that it attributes greater responsibility to the actions of the RSBL command, “appointed by the municipality”.
“There is a total disarray in the management of the regiment, when the Lisbon Chamber, and it is public in the speeches of the President of the Chamber [Carlos Moedas]made a brutal investment in the regiment and in several services”he stressed.
In a response sent to Lusa, a source from Lisbon City Council indicated that “in the vehicles and equipment component there was a investment of around eight million eurosenabling RSBL to respond to highly complex and dangerous situations”.
“With regard to improvements in working conditions, it should be noted that works worth 450 thousand euros in several barracks. The Public Tender Process for the acquisition of 300 puffer jackets and 230 rain suits for RSBL operatives“, indicated a source from the executive led by social democrat Carlos Moedas.
In addition to the issue of personal protective equipment and working conditions, the SNBP complains of a “lack of transparency and compliance” with a protocol signed between the RSBL, the Lisbon City Council and the Santa Maria Hospital. This protocol allows the Lisbon Sapadores Firefighters to provide prevention services at the heliport “24 hours a day, 365 days a year, with a team of six members and an urban firefighting vehicle”.
In return, Santa Maria Hospital was supposed to provide pre-hospital material to RSBL, and be responsible for training firefighters and costs, but, according to Sérgio Carvalho, this situation never occurred. “To this day, no one has ever asked the Santa Maria Hospital for anything. The Lisbon City Council is being harmed because the regiment and its command do not ask for this material, so that it can be replaced in the closets of our barracks and in ambulances, as stated in the protocol”, he pointed out.
Regarding training, Sérgio Carvalho said that this has been provided by the RSBL school, during working hours, “with all costs being borne by the Lisbon City Council”. “I don’t believe that the Mayor is aware of this”he highlighted.
The SNBP had already announced at the end of October that firefighters from the Lisbon Firefighters Regiment would begin a strike on November 17th due to “persistent problems in working conditions”, guaranteeing only minimum services.
During the strike period, minimum services will be guaranteed to ensure assistance to the population of Lisbon, assured Sérgio Carvalho, with the strike focusing on prevention and inspection services, floor cleaning, among other services that do not jeopardize assistance.