There were frantic scenes at the Salelologa Wharf on Wednesday evening as three detained fishing ships went up in flames. The incident has sparked safety concerns.

Thanks to ‘citizen journalism’ the whole world was made aware of the emergency. Live videos of the incident were broadcast with copious amounts of pictures on different media forums. From observation at the scene and the footage, it can be said that there was a serious lack of safety.

Adults rushed to the scene and the first thing they did was take out their phones and start filming the inferno. In all this chaos, children can be seen close to the fire, just metres away from the burning ships. Adults were rushing to have a look as well.

The first thing that should have been done was to cordon off the area. Keep the public back and let the professionals deal with the fire. Samoa Ports Authority staff were the first ones who rushed to the fire and started the battle before the Samoa Fire and Emergency Services Authority team arrived. The firefighters put up a fight that lasted overnight.

In all of this, the actions of the police and SPA have to be questioned in terms of safety. The fumes from the burning ship are not safe at all and being in close proximity to the burning vessels could have been dangerous to the public.

It was sad to see the first ferry arrive on Thursday in a smoke-filled environment. The ships were still burning on Thursday.

The firefighters are trained for such scenarios and although as the Fire Commissioner Tanuvasa Petone Mauga admitted, the ship fires were something new for his crew. At least they knew the basics and would be better protected.

On Thursday, a 13-year-old boy was taken for questioning. He was the last person seen coming out of one of the ships before the fire started. All of this was caught on a DMC restaurant surveillance camera.

How is it that despite the wharf security, a 13-year-old was able to board the detained ship? This shows that others before him may have been able to board the ships and perhaps ransack through them.

The Salelologa Wharf may not be considered an international port of entry but it is the only entry point into Savaii. A lack of security is a reason for concern. If you can recall the Kire Runner saga. The pleasure boat arrived directly from Pago Pago to Salelologa and offloaded items. It was only stopped after it had left the wharf.

Meth is on the increase and the police have stated that it is sipping in through the borders. Places like these that are free to exploitation. Security at the wharf has to be beefed up and certain areas closed off to the public.

It was a good combined effort by the firefighters, SPA, the police and villagers of Salelologa that led to a bigger disaster being averted. The quick thinking of the people on the ground also has to be commended as the SPA tug boat pulled the three boats on fire from eight others. This was a dangerous task but executed brilliantly.

In all of this, the lack of safety that has been identified needs to be dealt with. SPA is viewing its security footage and preparing a report of the incident. Hopefully, all of these are identified in that report and used to upgrade safety and security.