If your workplace, school, church or shop welcomes 50 people or more daily, you now legally need a trained fire warden — and the deadline is closer than you think.

Right, this is a big one for fire safety in Nigeria.

The Federal Fire Service has just unveiled a nationwide mandatory Fire Warden Training and Certification Programme for any organisation that receives an average of 50 or more persons daily.

According to a statement jointly signed on Friday by the Commandant of the National Fire Academy, ACF Umetali Peter, and the Managing Director/Principal Consultant of Pilgrims Integrated Management Consult Ltd., Ukpola Okereke Chinedu, and reported by cbinews.tv, this is a major step towards strengthening fire safety and emergency preparedness across the country.

In their words, the initiative is aimed at “transforming fire safety culture across Nigeria by equipping organisations with trained In-House Fire Wardens — the first responders to fire emergencies.”

And frankly, it’s long overdue. The Service noted that fire outbreaks remain one of the leading causes of preventable loss of lives and property in Nigeria, adding that investigations have shown the absence of trained emergency responders within facilities often leads to delayed response, poor evacuation, avoidable injuries and extensive property damage.

So, what does this mean for you?

If you run an office, school, place of worship, mall, hospital, factory or any public facility, you are now required to nominate one fire warden for every 50 staff members, occupants, students, worshippers, customers or average daily users of your facility.

All nominated personnel must undergo the prescribed training and obtain certification directly from the Federal Fire Service.

Registration has already commenced, with the first phase of training set to kick off on August 31, 2026, at designated centres — starting with Lagos.

And this isn’t one of those programmes you can ignore. The Service warned that facilities that fail to comply may face sanctions as provided under the Federal Fire Service Act, including legal penalties and possible sealing of facilities found to be unsafe for public use.

As the statement put it: “Fire safety is a shared responsibility. Every workplace, institution, business premises, and public facility requires trained in-house emergency responders who can provide immediate intervention during the critical first few minutes of a fire incident.”

They added that prompt response during those first few minutes often determines whether a minor incident is contained or becomes a full-blown disaster.

If your organisation falls in this category, now is the time to get registered.

Credit: cbinews.tv

#FireSafetyNigeria #FederalFireService #FireWardenTraining #WorkplaceSafety #NigeriaNews #EmergencyPreparedness #CBINewsTV