BULAWAYO City Council (BCC)’s fleet of ambulances have reportedly outlived their lifespan and broke down quite often, a recent council report has revealed.
BY NQOBANI NDLOVU
The report compiled by council’s environmental, management and engineering services committee shows that the local authority currently had a shortfall of 65 ambulances.
“In response the acting town clerk (Sikhangele Zhou) advised that the authorised establishment for ambulances was 115 and the actual permanent establishment was 50. There was a variance of 65 hence the decline in service delivery,” part of the report read.
“Most of the ambulances had reached their five-year lifespan as they had been in service for 10 years. Council had manpower, machinery and equipment challenges. In the current budget, provision was made to procure four ambulances which would improve the current situation.”
Zhou was responding to queries by councillors Rodney Jele and Thobani Ncube on the status of the local authority’s ambulance establishment.
“Councillor Ncube observed that during the festive season, council had faced challenges due to non-availability of ambulances. He suggested that the fleet be increased to ensure better service delivery in Bulawayo,” the report said.
