The construction for the Fire Station in Faleolo is yet to be completed but the services will be available either this week or next week to cater to villages on the West side of Upolu.

This was confirmed by the Samoa Fire and Emergency Services Authority (S.F.E.S.A.) Commissioner Tanuvasa Petone Mauga .

He said there was a temporary station at Faleolo which they plan to start handling operations and responses to fire incidents on that side before the main station officially opens.

"The station at Faleolo, we are still waiting and it's sometime this month but the service we are scheduling to start this month. There is a temporary fire station which we're planning to start this month especially now that the fire incidents are happening again from that side of the island," he said.

"So there is a need for a station to be on that side to cater for families on that side to make response closer to that side. It's either this month or this week when the service on that station will commence then we will start operation from the temporary station.

"The whole service including S.F.E.S.A ambulance, emergency responders and all that will be available at that station."

According to Tanuvasa, the permanent and main station is scheduled to be finished before the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (C.H.O.G.M.) in October as is the initial schedule. 

This is despite the original estimation that more time was needed for the fire station to be ready.

Tanuvasa in a previous interview with this newspaper confirmed that the endorsed Faleolo fire station is anticipated to be completed in the next fiscal year which is 2024.

This was his response upon requests from concerned residents on the Western side of Upolu regarding delayed response from F.E.S.A especially during fire incidents which Tanuvasa agreed with.

"I agree with them there are cases where our response is delayed due to the distance of the stations in Apia and Faleata from their locations hence why we've been working on that fire station at Faleolo and we're trying to get it running as soon as possible so we're looking at the next financial year for it to be established and used," he said.

Vaaiga Tafalole from Pata in Falelatai whose home was destroyed by fire in late January said their house or maybe some of their belongings could have been saved if the F.E.S.A team arrived earlier.

"They were called for assistance the moment our house caught fire but they arrived when everything was burnt to the ground so there was nothing for them to do," she said.

Mrs. Tafalole said it would have been helpful if a fire station was close-by. 

Samoa Observer understands that the same concern was raised by other rural residents who have had similar experiences with fire incidents.

With the new fire station to be established, the Commissioner said the number of firefighters has increased and will be enough to cater to the need from across the islands including Savaii, Manono and Apolima.

A total of 180 staff were employed under the Authority as of last year with the majority under the Operations Division. This is an increase of 55 staff, in 2019 where there were only 125 staff.