The Regional Secretary for Health said today in Horta that establishment of a fire safety scheme is a goal of the Regional Government to ensure that the Azorean population can feel safe when they are inside regional buildings.

"It is always better being safe than sorry," said Luís Cabral. The government official spoke during the plenary session of the Legislative Assembly, defending the proper operation of firefighting systems "is fundamental to safety in case of accident."

Luís Cabral spoke during a debate on the proposal for regional legislative decree establishing the legal scheme on fire safety in the buildings of the Autonomous Region of the Azores, which was approved majority. The government official stressed that this area is "changing constantly" due to technological innovations and scientific evolution. It lacks regular revisions on the legal frameworks to ensure its proper implementation.

The legal document proposed by the Government, which results from the adoption of the national legal scheme in force for this area into the regional legislation, "ensures the provision of fire safety measure to all Azoreans."

As for schools in the Region, Luís Cabral assured that they are entitled to self-protection measures as they will be included in the new system.

"It makes no sense that schools be excluded from a scheme that is being revised and updated," the Regional Secretary said, noting that, for this reason, the new legal document repeals the rules of the scheme currently in force for schools; the latter does not respond to the current needs in this area.