OrBorTors to become fire fighters

PATONG: In an attempt to improve brush fire control and save money at the same time, Thailand’s Tambon Administration Organizations (OrBorTor) are to be trained to deal with blazes in their areas. The new policy was announced in Phuket today by Sawat Dulyapach, Deputy Director-General of the Royal Forest Department, at the department’s annual seminar. The gathering attracted 148 unit chiefs from around the country to the Royal Paradise Hotel, where they will continue meetings until Saturday. K. Sawat said the new policy was necessary because the professional firefighters were now obliged to man their posts all year, not just in the dry season. Empowering local governments would involve training OrBorTor staff to organize and manage officers and volunteers in villages and towns to handle outbreaks of fire, he said. “With the small number of officers we have, we can’t work alone any longer,” K. Sawat added. OrBorTors nationwide have accepted their new fire-fighting role.