PHILIPSBURG--Fire-fighters held their 25th annual Fireman's Day Parade to honour their hard work and dedication to the community of St. Maarten on Friday.
The parade started in front of the Government Administration Building in Philipsburg around 5:00pm. A marching band of 16 fire-fighters marched through the Philipsburg shopping district in their ceremonial uniforms.
New fire rescue vehicles ? a ladder truck, crane truck, pump truck and a dump truck ? were displayed in the centre of town during the parade.
The parade was brought to a momentary halt to salute Governor Eugene Holiday and ended with a commemoration ceremony at the old fire station.
Among the dignitaries present at the ceremony were Governor Eugene Holiday, Prime Minister Sarah Wescot-Williams, Fire Chief Winston Salomon and Disaster Management Section Head Paul Martens.
All of the speakers at the ceremony stressed their appreciation for the fire-fighters' service to the community and gave insight into new initiatives to cooperate with other islands. �������
Wescot-Williams said, "I am beyond grateful for all the hard work of the fire-fighters and I must commend them for everything they do for St. Maarten. 25 years of exceptional service, and somehow, each year, you continue to grow better and stronger. "
Salomon said, "We are striving to bring more comprehensive training programmes for the fire-fighters so that we can continue strengthening our Fire Department. Unity between the Dutch-speaking islands of the Caribbean will ensure a stronger, more prepared force of first responders."
Martens said, "There are plans in the works to expand our disaster management cooperation efforts beyond the Dutch islands in the Caribbean. We are now venturing into establishing harmony with the English-speaking islands as well. We have to be prepared to help each other in the case of a tsunami or earthquake."
After the commemoration ceremony, fire-fighters, government officials, Members of Parliament and other dignitaries socialised together in the old fire station.
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