Monrovia – The first time the city of Chicago donated over US$7 million worth of firefighting equipment to a Liberian community in the United States, efforts to get the Government of Liberia fund the shipping of those materials to Liberia proved futile.
FrontPageAfrica gathered that at that time the government insisted it could not bear the cost although the donation would come before the country’s most fatal fire disasters in September 2019. That inferno caused the death of 28 pupils at an Islamic school in Paynesville.
Again, the Prince Ibrahima and Isabella Freedom Foundation, a US-based Liberian non-for-profit on March 9, 2020, has engaged the city of Chicago for firefighting equipment and will take delivery of a large consignment of resources. The fire service equipment is expected to be shipped to Liberia.
Worth more than US$8 million, the firefighting equipment was officially given to Dr. Artemus W. Gaye, the former president of the Liberian community in Chicago. Dr. Gaye says he’s making efforts for the items to be removed and shipped to Liberia by early April this year.
The items include: oxygen masks, uniforms, cutting saws, water hoses, tanks, stretchers, fire engines and ambulances.
The arrangement that led to the massive donation began back in 2019 prior to the deadly fire that killed dozens of children in September 2019 when the unequipped Liberia Fire Service was nowhere to control the blaze which started at night.
Deeply touched by the deadly incident, Dr. Gaye, who is also the founder of the Prince Ibrahima & Isabella Freedom Foundation, and former Liberian Consul General in Chicago, Hon. Alexander Gbayee began re-engaging the US city authority to help curb Liberia’s frequent fire disasters.
And then the city, after rounds of engagements, agreed to make the donation of the equipment but requested that the Liberian community will bear the full cost of shipping them to Liberia.
“Our tasks, according to the City of Chicago, are to bear full legal and financial responsibilities in logistics and payment of the shipment to Liberia,” Dr. Gaye said.
According to a “Formal Waiver of Responsibility of Injury at Chicago Fire Department (CFD)”, there will be volunteer staff of the city who will assist in the loading of donated items by Chicago Fire Department.
The City also agreed to waive all legal responsibilities from the CFD due to injury that may occur while performing duties in loading or assisting in the arrangements of the equipment.
Early in July 2019, Dr. Gaye disclosed that he shared the news of the huge donation with the Liberian government through the office of the President to the Liberia National Fire Service.
Dr. Gaye then funded his trip to Liberia in October 2019 to convince the government to fund the shipping of the equipment, which he considers “a great gesture for the greater common good of Liberia beyond politics”.
But the government lost interest and stated that it didn’t have the capacity or funds, which was estimated at US$150,000, to transport the materials.
After Liberia failed to maximize the availability of the equipment, the City of Chicago was constrained to donate the firefighting equipment to Mexico and Porto Rico.
However, Dr. Gaye said the Liberian community has still been working to ensure the country benefits for the now available fire equipment.
“Nevertheless, we did not give up and went back to convince the city of Chicago to give us the second chance,” Dr. Gaye said.
“On March 1, 2020, we received a call from Mr. Patrick H. McDermott, the president of the International Training Force to begin the process of removing and shipping these valuable items to Liberia”.
Dr. Gaye expressed gratitude to Mayor Laurie Lightfoot, Fire Commissioner Richard C. Ford II, and Alderman Chris Taliaferro of the 29th ward of Chicago, chairman on Public Safety.
He added that the City of Chicago is interested in building a “regional threat and disaster management training academy for the West African”.
Such facility will help us train emergency workers, fire fighters, and other personnel involved in public security or safety. This could be the first of its kind in the West African region or Africa as a whole, he said.
In the next three weeks, Dr. Gaye and partners are seeking to raise US$150,000 to ship a five 40ft container, three 53 footers (cooling trailers), one school bus, five water crafts (boats), one semi-truck, four light vehicles, medical supplies, and other items.
“It is our hope that ordinary Liberians in the diaspora and homeland will join in the process to contribute towards a proposed GoFundMe drive. In combining two quotes of John F. Kennedy, we as Liberians ought to ‘ask not what your [our] country can do for you, but what you can do for your [our] country’ because every accomplishment starts with the decision to try. We therefore seek everyone’s contribution to this worth goal,” Dr. Gaye concluded in a statement.