953 vehicle fire incidents registered last year
Published: 04:06 PM,Jun 02,2024 | EDITED : 08:06 PM,Jun 02,2024
Muscat: The Civil Defence and Ambulance Authority (CDAA) handled 953 vehicle fire incidents in 2023 compared to 917 incidents a year earlier.
Among the most important causes that lead to vehicle fires were fuel or oil leakage from the tank or pipes, over-inflated/under-inflated vehicle tyres, non-compliance by safety procedures while filling fuel such as smoking and using a mobile phone, installing fake spare parts, vehicle maintenance by unprofessional mechanic, high engine temperature due to low water level in the coolant, and installing additional electrical devices and connections in the vehicle.
The CDAA advises vehicle owners to follow safety procedures specially checking the vehicle on a daily basis and ensuring the safety of its parts before hitting the road, conducting periodic maintenance and replacing damaged parts with original ones, avoiding smoking inside the vehicle, turn off the engine when refueling, do not leave lighters or flammable materials in the vehicle, do not leave children unattended inside a vehicle, do not install additional devices or connections and ensure that there is a usable manual fire extinguisher.
The CDAA stresses the importance of abidance by safety rules upon noticing smoke emanating from the vehicle engine. At such a situation a motorist is required to reduce speed, turn on the warning signals, parking the vehicle in a safe place, turn off the engine and get out of the vehicle, call the emergency number (9999) or the CDAA operations centre on 24343666, attempt to put out the fire using the extinguisher without exposing oneself or others to danger and staying away from the vehicle if the fire persists until the fire brigades arrive.
Among the most important causes that lead to vehicle fires were fuel or oil leakage from the tank or pipes, over-inflated/under-inflated vehicle tyres, non-compliance by safety procedures while filling fuel such as smoking and using a mobile phone, installing fake spare parts, vehicle maintenance by unprofessional mechanic, high engine temperature due to low water level in the coolant, and installing additional electrical devices and connections in the vehicle.
The CDAA advises vehicle owners to follow safety procedures specially checking the vehicle on a daily basis and ensuring the safety of its parts before hitting the road, conducting periodic maintenance and replacing damaged parts with original ones, avoiding smoking inside the vehicle, turn off the engine when refueling, do not leave lighters or flammable materials in the vehicle, do not leave children unattended inside a vehicle, do not install additional devices or connections and ensure that there is a usable manual fire extinguisher.
The CDAA stresses the importance of abidance by safety rules upon noticing smoke emanating from the vehicle engine. At such a situation a motorist is required to reduce speed, turn on the warning signals, parking the vehicle in a safe place, turn off the engine and get out of the vehicle, call the emergency number (9999) or the CDAA operations centre on 24343666, attempt to put out the fire using the extinguisher without exposing oneself or others to danger and staying away from the vehicle if the fire persists until the fire brigades arrive.