Where there is a fire, hazard, accident or a call for a safety class, Emergency Management Services (EMS) Community Educator you’re most likely to find Innocent Shibambo there fighting fires literarily and figuratively with her dedicated and enthusiastic personality. Innocent is well-known among her peers as Mabebeza, Babes we-Fire, which perfectly describes her passion for her job. She is willing to go beyond the call of duty to make the City fire and accident free.
“I wish to see our City become a fire- and accident-free zone. It’s a long shot but with hard work and through teaching adults and children, I believe it can be done,” she says.
Babes we-Fire is a ‘Wonder Woman’ of fire services and lives to make a difference protecting the public and communities in which she serves.
Her dedication has a way of bringing out the best in everyone she comes into contact with.
The CEO of Diepkloof-based Chris Hani Baragwanath Academic Hospital, Dr Nkele Lesia, can vouch for Innocent’s fire services dedication.
The hospital recently awarded Babes we-Fire with a letter of commendation for her great work in training and equipping hospital staff in fire safety.
“Three months after I completed training, there were electrical faults that caused fires. The team at the hospital was able to manage and put out the fires as a result of remembering the training it underwent,” recalls Innocent.
Dr Lesia said in the commendation: “When we called Innocent, she promptly responded as if she were waiting at the hospital security gate.”
The Provincial Disaster Management Centre also awarded Babes we-Fire a medal for excellence in June 2022 by.
“Upon receiving my medal, I felt like I had won the lotto. There is no better feeling of appreciation when you are recognised for a job well executed.”
Born and bred in Diepkloof, Soweto, Innocent aims to continue running effective programmes that not only include fire safety but also basic firefighting, pool safety, dressing wounds and fractures, as well as poison prevention and staying alive until emergency services arrive.
Babes we-Fire says her passion for people started at a very young age. She looks up to her uncle and well-known private practitioner, Dr Tiny Mhinga, who exposed her to ambulances and working with patients during school holidays.
She holds a number of qualifications such as firefighting, ECD practitioner, facilitator and moderator, among others.
Innocent has worked in many different fields. She has been a proud taxi driver, a domestic worker and a firefighter but has without a doubt found her true calling as a community educator for EMS.
“It doesn’t matter where and how you start. It’s all in how we progress and plan to finish. My job is my life and I love what I do. I want people to remember my legacy as being someone who never said no to a challenge,” she says.
Written by Sascha-Lee Joseph
12/12/2022
