At a fire safety awareness camp cum workshop held recently at Unnayan Bhavan, the shortcomings of Sector V offices in this regard were laid bare. “Many buildings have built illegal mezzanine floors to accommodate more employees. These are not mentioned in their building plans. Other offices turn off sprinklers so employees can smoke indoors,” said Debashis Sen, the chairman of Nabadiganta Industrial Township Authority (NDITA), the administrative body in charge of Sector V.
“The area mainly houses IT companies, whereby they have to deal with international organisations as per the latter’s working hours. This means using computers, air conditioners and other machines round the clock,” pointed out Sen. “But machines need rest too; continuous usage heats them up.”
The venue for the demonstration, Unnayan Bhavan, is the office of the NDITA. Also present was fire and emergency services department minister Sujit Bose, who shared the department’s impending plans. “We will be introducing 100 fire bikes which can carry 15 litres of water and can easily travel through narrow lanes,” he said. Visitors to the Book Fair this year will remember having seen these bikes on duty at Central Park.
“We will also be introducing a bigger ladder measuring 101m. Currently our tallest ladder can reach 68m. We are planning to increase the number of fire stations in the state too,” said Bose. “We would also teach fire fighting measures to youngsters and give basic equipment to a few clubs so the youths can start with initial fire-fighting measures in case of a fire,” added the minister.
The firemen demonstrated the use of fire extinguishers and the type of extinguisher one should use in each case. For instance, water extinguishers are to be used on solid items in case of fires started by wood, paper, jute, cotton etc.
For fires caused by liquids like petrol, kerosene, diesel and LPG, hydrogen and carbon dioxide-based extinguishers are to be used. For metals, dry chemical powder extinguishers or sand are to be used.
“Remove the pin attached to the unit, point the hose at the base of the fire. Squeeze the lever with all your might and sweep the hose from side to side,” said a fire department official as he demonstrated how to extinguish a fire.
“If handled properly, even a child can stop a fire in the first two-and-half minutes, that is the most crucial time to stop a fire,” said Jagmohan, director general of the fire and emergency services department.
“Just like there is a set of guidelines for road safety, we have some dos and don’ts for fire safety,” he added. “One should be aware of the guidelines and know how to deal with a fire to save oneself and others.”
Fire department officials hold the workshop. Debasmita Bhattacharya
The Telegraph
