The Samoa Fire and Emergency Authority (F.E.S.A.) Commissioner, Tanuvasa Petone Mauga has urged public and private property owners in Samoa to install fire alarms.

His appeal comes on the back of another fire in Apia's commercial area on Wednesday evening which led to the burning of another business premises. 

When contacted by the Samoa Observer on Thursday, for an update on their investigations into the cause of the fire within the Sunrise business compound, Tanuvasa spoke of the importance of setting up fire alarms in homes and offices. 

"Early fire detection is crucial and plays a vital role in protecting our properties and especially our lives," Tanuvasa said. "Having fire alarms which can notify the residents or our office immediately and can minimise the damages to a property in case of a fire emergency.

"It's a very useful thing to have in our homes and offices and we would like to encourage everyone to set up fire alarm systems in their homes."

According to Tanuvasa, the F.E.S.A. investigations into the blaze continue, though he confirmed that the fire started at the back of the Sunrise restaurant where their overseas employees are staying. 

By the time they arrived on the scene, the strong winds on Wednesday evening had spread the flames to the nearby houses and businesses. 

"That was our main goal last night when we arrived," Tanuvasa said. "We tried so hard to contain the spread of the fire so that the nearby houses and businesses wouldn't be affected. 

"We did our best and we feel for the people who were affected."

Tanuvasa said it took them 20 minutes to bring the fire under control and stop it from spreading to the nearby buildings. He also clarified the concerns raised by people at the scene on Wednesday evening, that the fire trucks did not have water when they arrived. 

"We don't provide water, we rely on Samoa Water Authority for that and we find the nearest output for the fire hydrant around the area," he said. "People assume that every fire truck they see should have water on it and that's why they think that way. People need to understand that."

He also added that all their teams were called in to help put out the fire on Wednesday night and they fought hard to halt its spread to adjacent buildings. 

It is believed that the fire started around 8 pm and quickly turned into a massive blaze which lit up the Apia night skies orange. Last week, Maria’s Pharmacy got burnt with authorities blaming electrical fault. 

Vaea Street was crowded with onlookers with most of them filming the scene. Residents of nearby buildings also scattered and some were in tears as the blaze became threatening with the wind.

The change in the wind direction ensured that the blaze did not spread to the neighbouring buildings as the firefighters blasted water onto the fire from at least six fire trucks. The Electric Power Corporation was also quick to cut off electricity to ensure the safety of people and buildings.