John “JQ” Quinata, Guam International Airport Authority executive manager, addresses attendees at a ribbon-cutting ceremony celebrating the completion of the airport’s Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting Facility in Tiyan, Barrigada, on Aug. 12, 2022.
Raymond Mantanona, Guam international Airport Authority aircraft rescue and fire fighting chief, participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the new fire facility on Aug. 12, 2022.
A bendision, or CHamoru blessing, is conducted by Para i Probechu’n i Taotao-Ta Inc., during a ribbon-cutting ceremony celebrating the completion of the Guam International Airport Authority’s Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting Facility in Tiyan, Barrigada on Aug. 12, 2022.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held to celebrate the completion of the Guam International Airport Authority’s Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting Facility in Tiyan, Barrigada on Aug. 12, 2022.
John “JQ” Quinata, Guam International Airport Authority executive manager, addresses attendees at a ribbon-cutting ceremony celebrating the completion of the airport’s Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting Facility in Tiyan, Barrigada, on Aug. 12, 2022.
A bendision, or CHamoru blessing, is conducted by Para i Probechu’n i Taotao-Ta Inc., during a ribbon-cutting ceremony celebrating the completion of the Guam International Airport Authority’s Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting Facility in Tiyan, Barrigada on Aug. 12, 2022.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held to celebrate the completion of the Guam International Airport Authority’s Aircraft Rescue and Fire Fighting Facility in Tiyan, Barrigada on Aug. 12, 2022.
Raymond Mantanona, Guam international Airport Authority aircraft rescue and fire fighting chief, participated in the ribbon-cutting ceremony of the new fire facility on Aug. 12, 2022.
A new aircraft rescue and firefighting facility has been completed and fully equipped with advanced technology that will improve response times in the event of an emergency, officials said.
On Friday morning, a ribbon-cutting ceremony was held at the new facility located at the south ramp of the A.B Won Pat Guam International Airport in Tiyan.
The $27.2 million facility has top-of-the-line equipment and will allow firefighters to be better prepared for emergencies.
“The firefighter facility will enhance their response time and also the equipment that will nurture their ability to understand the importance of being a firefighter day and night,” said Guam International Airport Authority fire Chief Raymond Mantanona.
The previous facility is more than 70 years old, and Mantanona said the new, advanced facility was needed by the firefighters.
“We needed an upgrade of our facility to store our equipment and also, not only facility-wise but training-wise, to house our equipment,” said Mantanona.
The most important thing for the firefighting team is the response time, or how quickly they can report to an emergency on the airfield.
With the state-of-the-art equipment and technology at the new facility, the response time will be quicker.
John M. Quinata, executive manager of the Guam International Airport Authority, shared how one of the biggest differences between the old and new facility was the time it took to fill up the trucks with water.
The old facility took 10 minutes minimum to fill up a truck with 3,000 gallons of water.
Now, with the new equipment in the facility, it only takes about three minutes to fill up completely.
The firefighters also now have their own individual rooms, while they previously had to share rooms in the other facility.
“Obviously they have outgrown that facility, this facility here is bells and whistles apart. The technology here is so much better,” said Quinata.
Nathaniel Dulla can be reached at
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