Saint Lucia has a new Chief Fire Officer, Mr. Ditney Downes whose appointment took effect on October 1, 2023.
Downes, who formerly served as Acting Fire Chief, joined the Saint Lucia Fire Service (SLFS) when he turned nineteen on June 17, 1991, and moved up through the ranks.
He attended the St. Augustine campus of the University of the West Indies in Trinidad and Tobago, where he achieved a degree in Management and Government with upper second-class honours.
Downes also has a certificate in public administration.
He attended the National Fire Academy in Maryland, USA, where he pursued the prestigious four-year executive fire officer program.
In addition, he has received training in Singapore, Poland, Switzerland, and throughout the Caribbean.
As fire chief, the 51-year old will be in charge of over three hundred Saint Lucia Fire Service staff.
His appointment preceded a $26 million government allocation to enhance the fire department’s capacity and improve emergency response services in Saint Lucia.
The Lower House of Parliament, on October 3, 2023, passed a motion tabled by Prime Minister Pierre to secure the financing from the Special Fund Reserve of the Caribbean Development Bank allocated from the European Investment Bank Climate Action Line of Credit II.
The funds will procure new emergency response vehicles including an aerodrome truck, train fire officers, and strengthen the institutional framework of the fire service.
Congratulations to Mr Downes.
That’s a move in the right direction. A MAN WHO has been doing the job for the last 4 former fire chiefs . A visionary, a genius, a mastermind. So congrats mister Downes,
Congratulations to you chief. I wish you you continued success in a post that you have held for the past several years. While not wearing the hat of chief, it is widely known that you and your efforts kept that organization afloat. What is maybe not common knowledge is the fact that several of the persons whom you assisted on a daily basis tried extremely hard to ensure that you did not succeed in becoming the new fire chief. They walked around with a report from the poorly done commission of inquiry petitioning all who would listen. Shame on those former fire chiefs and fellow officers who engaged in such a despicable act. But good sense prevailed and you are the victor having faced such adversities. So Sir, do for the fire service the good WE ALL know you are capable of – change that organization for the better.
Congrats Mr Downes. Every one knows that you have held that department together even when all guns and ammunition were blazing aginst you, As a mother of a fireman i sometimes wonder how you servived.God bless those who made that choice.I dedicate a song by Hezikia Walker to you….GOD FAVORED ME….All the best.