Summer blazes

Fire brigades are supposed to be on alert in summer months when there is the possibility of fires breaking out. Unfortunately, many people have died and suffered serious burn injuries and lost much of their valuables in blazes in four villages of Dadu district of Sindh recently, waiting endlessly for the area fire brigades to respond to their distress call. It is not known whether firefighters arrived at these villages even after the residents suffered colossal losses in terms of life and property.

According to media reports, nine children were burnt alive in one village and 20 adults sustained severe burns while many persons were injured in the fires that swept through three other villages in the district. The fire in Faiz Mohammad Daryani village, some 30 km from Mehar town, was the most devastating. Here one couple lost four of their young children and another three young siblings. Residents of the four villages also lost tons of food grains, a large number of cattle and other valuables. Most inhabitants of the affected villages are left with no or little food and fodder for their livestock. Small farmers and peasants largely depend on raising cattle, as this is a significant source of their income. Their plight can well be judged when they have lost a large number of cattle in fire. Many houses in the four villages have been reduced to ashes, and their dwellers are now living under the open sky. Seeing no signs of firefighters coming, the villagers put out the blazes by their collective efforts. Residents of the affected villages say they have been left to their own devices.

Sympathetic messages from politicians have poured in through the media with promises that villagers will be provided with all possible help like food and fodder. Since many villagers have been rendered homeless, it is hoped that the government will also help them rebuild their houses and lives. Lives lost and houses destroyed mark the inefficiency of the relevant fire brigade units. Inquiries need to be conducted into the fire incidents to ascertain their cause.

 

Published in The Express Tribune, April 21^st, 2022.

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