The Indian Express: Mumbai: Tuesday, June 12, 2018.
Fire
incidents have claimed 293 lives and injured over 900 in Mumbai in the last six
years, the Mumbai Fire Brigade (MFB) has revealed under the Right to
Information Act. Pointing towards widespread disregard for fire safety norms,
data from Mumbai Fire brigade reveals that Mumbai has recorded over 29,000 fire
incidents from 2012 to 2018.
In a reply to
a query under the Right to Information Act filed by NGO Adhikar Foundation, the
MFB has revealed that between 2012-13 and 2017-18, more than 4,000 fire
incidents have been reported in the city every year, on an average.
Between
2012-13 till date around 29,140 fire incidents have been reported in which 293
deaths and 925 injuries have been reported. This incident also include deaths
of seven firefighters.
“Be it slums,
high-rises, restaurants, industrial units, studios or old buildings each has
had massive fire incidents this year. The violation of fire safety regulations
has turned each into a tinder box,” said Shakeel Ahmed founder of Adhikar
Foundation.
According to
the Maharashtra Fire Prevention and Life Safety Measures Act, 2009, buildings
are supposed to conduct a fire audit twice a year in January and July and
submit fitness certificates to the MFB. However, compliance of the provisions
in the Act and the MFB’s follow-up both leave much to be desired.
Ahmed blamed
the fire brigade and BMC for failing to inspect the buildings for fire safety
norms. “It’s not just about installing fire safety equipment but, the owners
and residents need to maintain these equipment throughout. However, I doubt
there is any regular inspection to keep a check on this,” Ahmed added.
Between 2010
and 2016, the Mumbai Fire Brigade had sent notices to 4,592 buildings in the
city for flouting fire safety norms, but initiated prosecution against only 14
buildings. A fire official said that it is practically impossible for the
brigade to keep following-up on cases and keep checking buildings.
Most of these
cases are due to short circuits, fire brigade officials claim. Giving an
example of how taking short-cuts could lead to loss of lives, they said many
people get rid of earth-leakage circuit-breakers (ELCB) as they may cause
tripping too often. An ELCB is a safety device used in electrical installations
to prevent electric shocks. It detects the smallest of stray voltages on the metal
enclosures of electrical equipment and interrupts the circuit if dangerous
voltage is detected.
“Electrical
wires have to be selected as per load. It is necessary to ensure they are
ISI-certified and not sub-standard. Similarly, with a circuit-breaker, cost
should not be a factor during installation,” said Prabhat Rahangdale, chief
fire officer, Mumbai Fire Brigade.
Rahangdale
said most fires in the city are due to electrical reasons. “Poor maintenance of
electrical wiring makes it vulnerable. Electrical wiring gets oxidised due to
exposure to weather. Most fatalities are due to inhalation of gas or smoke
emitted after burning of wires and due to fear,” he added.
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