By Samuel Kutty — MUSCAT: APRIL 2 - Scorching summer may spark fire accidents in the Sultanate if precautions are not taken. In a first such incident, a fire that broke out on Sunday at a building housing workers in Ruwi was put out by the timely response of Public Authority for Civil Defence and Ambulance (PACDA). Luckily, no one was injured in the accident. Incidents of fire become a major challenge for agencies like the Royal Oman Police (ROP), PACDA and Muscat Municipality.
Laws stipulate that all residential and commercial buildings should have well maintained fire and safety systems in place.
Officials say electrical short-circuits and lack of safety precautions are major reasons for fire mishaps.
“We always do inspections at commercial and industrial buildings to ensure that fire-fighting devices are in place. Unfortunately, many old buildings do not have proper system,” said an official at PACDA.
It is mandatory that alarms, hoses and fire extinguishers are in working condition, he said.
Electric fires are often caused by poor wiring by unqualified electricians using fake gadgets in circuit breakers.
A well-secured place should also be provided on the ground floor for gas cylinders.
According to Muscat Municipality Building Regulation Act, fire extinguishing equipment shall be appropriately placed and according to approved technical standards.
“To limit the spread of fire to other parts of the building, staircases, emergency exits, corridors and walls should be capable of resisting fire for half an hour at least or made of non-inflammable material,” says the regulations. Although the civic body is not responsible for inspecting fire safety devices in buildings, it provides building permits only after approval and clearance from the ROP’s civil defence unit.
According to a report by the National Centre for Statistics and Information, Oman sees a fire case every three hours, and 23 per cent of them are reported from residential areas.
Last year, a series of fires had occurred in different warehouses and industrial areas in Oman, damaging property and goods worth thousands of rials.
“Many old buildings do not have fire extinguishing equipment. In some cases flats and villas are used as labour camps housing a large a number of workers,” said Muscat Municipality Councillor Salim Mohammed al Ghamari.
Landlords and tenants together should take joint efforts to make sure that fire-fighting devices are in place, he said.
“Owners who rent out buildings without facilities to tenants should be taken to task. Similarly, labour camps and any kind of manufacturing units should not be allowed in residential areas,” he said.
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