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Kochi schools are not prepared for fire accidents, says audit.
Almost 48 private and government schools have not cleared the fire safety audit here in Kochi. They have been issued notices to comply as soon as possible. Besides schools taking proactive action, it is high time parents pressure the schools to comply with fire safety.
Parents may actually have to rely on prayers if schools in the district face any fire emergencies. Such is the level of preparedness of these schools in Kochi that the Fire and Rescue Services Department, Ernakulam actually issued instructions to 48 educational institutions, including elite private CBSE schools, government and aided schools as well as colleges run by private managements, to urgently take measures to make their premises safe.
This shocking revelation comes after 4 teams, consisting of officials from the fire department, had recently conducted an audit of the educational institutions in the district. "The fire audit was done to ensure the safety of children in educational institutions in case of fire mishaps. While many institutions had minor fire safety violations, 48 institutions were found to have serious lapses and notices were issued to them. It is disturbing to find students studying in institutions that do not care for safety," said Sidhakumar V, assistant divisional officer, Fire and Rescue Services Department, Ernakulam.
Not many people are aware of the detailed fire and safety guidelines issued for buildings of educational institutions. According to these guidelines, buildings should have an assembly point for people to gather safely in case of a fire outbreak; an additional exit or staircase that serves as a fire exit; functioning fire extinguishers that are renewed on time; two water tanks in high-rise buildings, with one on the ground and another on the terrace having a minimum capacity of 50,000 litres and 25,000 litres, respectively; three pumps, including a jockey pump that functions automatically, an electric pump and a manual pump in case of power failure.
As can be seen in the level of details and the requirements these guidelines are pretty comprehensive and try to cover most eventualities in the unfortunate case of a fire outbreak. That is why it is more appalling to see that educational institutes not complying with them.
Generally, educational institutions have been categorized as less hazardous, which means that they are less prone to fire outbreaks. However, it is essential that they follow the prescribed guidelines of the fire and safety department, Sidhakumar said.
According to the education department, the onus to ensure fire safety lies with the institutions. "In aided and government institutions, we conduct inspections before the start of the academic year. However, there is no such check on private CBSE and ICSE schools," said Shinemon M K, deputy director of education (DDE), Ernakulam
Rajesh Panicker, Director, Fire Prevention and Safety Management, a safety equipment company based out of Jaipur says, “In about a minute and 58 seconds a fire can be controlled through any means available. However, after 2 minutes the fire reaches a critical stage and evacuation becomes difficult as the school exit doors can prove to be insufficient.” In essence, the first 2 minutes are absolutely crucial in controlling the outbreak of fire. These 2 minutes could be very precious specially in a school environment. Rajesh’s company specialises in equipment that controls the fire without letting it reach the blaze state.
"Besides school authorities, it is also the duty of parents to check if these institutions have fire facilities. Most parents are only bothered about the academic performance of their wards," added Sidhakumar.
Sidhakumar’s comment rightfully resonates with parents across India. How many parents actually have the fire safety in mind while choosing a school for their child? Only academic performances and extra curriculars seem to be driving the decisions. When parents become conscious about fire safety among other things, enough pressure will be exerted on schools to actually work towards getting a fire safety certificate but also keep it year after year.
Image Courtesy: http://firefightersam.com/