Thaindian News

New Delhi, Dec 9 (IANS) As a devastating fire in a Kolkata hospital claimed 81 lives, experts in Delhi pointed out how some hospitals are a ticking time bomb with inadequate fire safety measures and non-adherence to safety norms.

“Certain government hospitals do not adhere to complete fire safety norms. The hospital authorities have been repeatedly requested to provide fire safety measures, but they are not taking fire safety norms seriously,” a Delhi Fire Service officer said.

Fire Safety Association of India (FSAI) executive member Nikhil Krishen said fire safety arrangements are taken for granted in most of the hospitals, particularly those run by the government.

“Many old hospitals, mostly government hospitals, do not have fire safety equipments like sprinklers. Even the roads inside big hospitals, which should be 6 metres wide, are blocked with parked vehicles. If a fire breaks out, the fire tenders cannot even enter,” Krishen said.

Delhi Fire Service’s former chief R.C. Sharma said: “It is not just about acquiring fire safety equipments, the hospitals should also know how to maintain and operate them.”

Some hospitals also lack trained staff to handle such emergencies.

“There are fire extinguishers and sand buckets but the staff lack knowledge to operate the gadgets during fire mishaps. The hospital staff should be trained in measures to control the fire, and they should be trained how to rescue the patients and use fire extinguishers,” a spokesperson of a government hospital said.

“The fire safety equipments are very expensive. The government should reduce tax on fire safety equipment so that everyone can start getting it,” the spokesperson added.

Fire officials suggested that the health officials organise disaster management programmes in all the hospitals and ensure that fire safety norms are implemented.