Africa-Press – Uganda. The fire that razed Grace Foam mattress factory at the Sino-Uganda Mbale Industrial Park in Mbale City, last Tuesday brings to the fore the deplorable fire safety measures in the country. According to witnesses, the police fire brigade responded quickly but their efforts to put out the inferno were impeded by a lack of fire fighting facilities in the industrial park.
The Mbale City Resident Commissioner, Mr John Rex Acila, said owing to lack of water reservoirs at the industrial park, the fire tenders had to leave the scene and travel several kilometres to the state lodge and Bank of Uganda regional offices to refill after running out of water. Their efforts were further hindered by a shortage of manpower. They were compelled to seek reinforcement from Soroti and Tororo, several kilometres away, as the fire raged. Given the long distance the reinforcement fire fighters had to travel, they arrived too late to save the situation.
What occurred in Mbale City is the usual haphazard response to fire outbreaks countrywide. This unfortunate modus operandi has on several occasions led to loss of lives and colossal damage of properties. Government has enacted several fire safety regulations. However, these rules are not implemented effectively, leading to the tragic fire incidents that have dogged the country.
Dormitories at several schools have caught fire over the years leading to death of learners. Some of these dormitories had burglar-proof windows, violating fire safety rules. This prevented the escape of learners when fire broke out.
According to the rules, all pubic facilities must have fire extinguishers but few do. However, even where this essential equipment is available, few people who work, reside in or frequent these buildings know how to use them. Little or no effort at all is made to teach how to use the fire extinguishers. It is also essential for public buildings and facilities to have early warning systems such as smoke detectors and fire escape mechanism. Unfortunately, these are seldom established.
Further more fire hydrants that are a key component in fighting fires, are few in many urban areas and non-existent in some. There is also a problem of unplanned construction of buildings in urban areas, leaving many places with no access for vehicles such as fire tenders and ambulances in case of emergences.
The police fire bridge department is also underfunded and understaffed, impeding its ability to fulfill its tasks. Many districts do not have fire tenders and have to rely on those from neighbouring districts. Unfortunately, these in most cases arrive to late to save the situation.
We call upon the government to ensure increase funding to the police fire brigade department to enable purchase of more equipment and recruitment and training of more staff. The government must put more effort in implementing fire safety regulations. Industrial parks and other manufacturing facilities should also consider acquiring their own fire tenders and training staff on how to put out fire instead of waiting for the understaffed and underequipped police fire brigade that is stretched thin.
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