Fire safety negligence causes most of Sharjah fires

Sharjah - The number of fire accidents during this summer has gone down as compared to previous years.

Negligence of industrial and commercial establishments, as well as residential buildings to comply with fire safety guidelines cause most of the fires, the Sharjah Civil Defence has said.
Improper storage of flammable materials, invalid electricity connections, poor ventilation, lack of fire extinguishers, emergency exits and alarms have been blamed for a majority of fire accidents during summer.
To reduce such mishaps, the civil defence authorities have intensified inspection and awareness campaigns targeting commercial and industrial establishments and residential units, too.
Col Sami Al Naqbi, director-general of the Sharjah Civil Defence, said that the department will continue awareness campaigns to educate the establishments about the importance of implementing fire safety procedures and then shore up inspections to ensure they follow the rules.
He stressed that every year, the civil defence introduces more advanced equipment for fighting fires during summer.
Al Naqbi said the department is cracking down on all industrial and commercial companies to check any breach of fire safety and protection procedures. The inspectors are currently visiting establishments to ensure that all units are obtaining periodical maintenance contracts with approved fire equipment maintenance firms, he pointed out.
The inspections also target restaurants and public kitchens. The number of fire accidents during this summer has gone down as compared to previous years due to increased awareness and tough measures taken by the department.
These measures include making it mandatory for industrial, commercial establishments and residential buildings to be equipped with smart alarm system linked to the civil defence control room.
When a fire occurs, the system alerts the operations room and sends instant information to dispatch firefighting teams from the nearest fire station to the site. This system has contributed in reducing the response time to six minutes. "Industrial and commercial establishments are obliged to pay for the firefighting operations if a fire breaks out due to their negligence. This rule, which was introduced last year, has gone a long way in decreasing fire accidents in Sharjah," he said.
Al Naqbi added that the civil defence has instructed contracting and consulting companies working in the safety and security fields to implement the installation of the new, advanced fire prevention systems which are designed to prevent suffocation and loss of lives during fire accidents.
"Owners of residential units have also been asked to instal smoke detectors, ensure validity of electrical appliances and maintain them regularly to avoid domestic fires during summer," he added.
- afkarali@khaleejtimes.com

• Sharjah