Maha hospital fire: Ignoring safety norms worrying, says expert

Even if they arefunctional, people are not trained to use it, he said.These are the two grey areas that need to beaddressed, he said.

A day after a blaze at a hospital in Bhandara killed 10 infants, National Fire Service College Director Ramesh Kumar said fire safety standards were being ignored in sensitive establishments, including hospitals, and the issue requires a lot of attention.

Talking to PTI on Sunday, Kumar said advance fire safety equipment is needed to be installed in all buildings and they have to be then properly maintained by trained staff.

Three fire engineers from the National Fire ServiceCollege, a Nagpur-based autonomous body managed by the UnionMinistry of Home Affairs, are part of the team conducting a probe into the fire in a hospital at Bhandara in Maharashtra, he said.

''We would be emphasizing on fire safety angles and how useful the safety equipment were and whether they were working or not, and whether the safety audit of the hospital took place or not,'' Kumar said.

He said the Centre as well as the Maharashtra government have laid down stringent fire safety norms.

''The Maharashtra government has also passed an Act that these norms should be followed, be it private or government buildings. But, these factors are being ignored by people. These factors need a lot of attention,'' he said.

''Advance fire safety equipment should be installed in all buildings, like hospitals, which are sensitive, and multi-story buildings, where there is always a danger of collateral damage in case of a fire, and there should also be periodic inspections,'' the official said.

In most places, even if the fire safety equipment are installed, they are generally not functional. Even if they are functional, people are not trained to use them, he said.

''These are the two grey areas that need to be addressed,'' he said.

(This story has not been edited by Devdiscourse staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)