Fire hazards: LDA never followed through on safety training request
Civil Defence officials say they had proposed one-week training in January.
Some 50 people ended up trapped inside the building. Some were rescued, some were killed attempting to escape the flames by jumping out the window, and others were killed by smoke or fire. . PHOTO: SHAFIQ MALIK, ABID NAWAZ/EXPRESS
LAHORE:
“Had people been given basic fire safety training, my brother would still be alive,” said Imran Raza, brother of accounts officer Syed Abu Zar Raza, who perished after being trapped on the ninth floor of the LDA Plaza.
Raza was among 25 people 24 of them Lahore Development Authority employees who lost their lives on May 9, when a fire broke out in a record room on the seventh floor of the LDA Plaza on Egerton Road. The blaze spread to a couple of floors above and below and fire fighters took 36 hours to put it out.
The Express Tribune has learnt that after a fire at a shoe factory on Bund Road in September 2012 in which at least 23 people were killed, the LDA moved a request to the Civil Defence Department for fire safety training, but never followed up.
The top three floors and one other floor of the nine-storey LDA Plaza building house LDA offices, while the other five storeys have been leased to 20 tenants. According to witnesses, one of the main reasons for the high death toll was that many workers at the building appeared not to have taken the threat of the fire seriously and remained at their desks for far too long. Another reason, according to Rescue 1122 officials, was that the fire fighters were only called to the scene after LDA people had tried to put out the fire themselves and failed.
Some 50 people ended up trapped inside the building. Some were rescued, some were killed attempting to escape the flames by jumping out the window, and others were killed by smoke or fire.
“Had these people been given training, they would have known the consequences of waiting,” said Imran Raza. He said that he worked at an international company where they were given fire safety training every few months. “Why can’t government employees working in high-rise buildings be given fire safety training?”
The LDA contacted the Civil Defence Department in October 2012. Civil Defence officials said that they contacted the LDA several times after that to arrange a training programme, but the authority did not respond. The Civil Defence office even prepared a schedule for a one-week training programme in January 2013, and delivered the proposal to the LDA administration office, but did not receive a response.
District Officer (Civil Defence) Qari Alam Sher said that they had started a publicity campaign on the importance of fire safety training in September 2012 after the Bund Road factory blaze, putting up banners around the city on the instructions of then DCO Noorul Amin Mengal. They soon received several requests for training, including a request from the LDA in the form of a letter from Deputy Director (Administration) Ali Saeed in October 2012.
They conducted training sessions at several factories, but not for the LDA.
Sher said that the Civil Defence Department could have trained all security staff and four personnel from each LDA department in one week. “When people are made aware of the consequences, they tend to respond urgently to emergency situations. Fire safety training not only includes how to fight fires using extinguishers and hydrants, but also how to evacuate people from the building,” he said.
LDA Director (Administration) Khalid Pervez said that a training session had taken place, but only for four people from the entire LDA staff. He claimed that this was all Civil Defence had proposed for them. Asked about the detailed one-week training programme proposed by the Civil Defence office, he said that he was not aware of it. He said that the question should be directed to the management of the LDA and Other Sponsors (LOS), a management committee in charge of the building’s affairs including fire safety. The LOS is led by a secretary who is an LDA director on deputation. LOS Secretary Akbar Nakai was contacted several times on the phone, but did not respond.
LDA Director (Electrical and Mechanical Engineering) Abdur Razzaq, who has the additional charge of LOS deputy director (EME), said that he was not aware about the Civil Defence Department’s proposal. He said that he did not believe that the fire was caused by a short circuit. “The wiring couldn’t have caused the fire there,” he said.
He added that it was possible that someone had started the fire on purpose “since the LDA has some valuable information”.
A Rescue 1122 official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said that the Punjab Forensic Science Agency had taken over the fire investigation. Their experts had collected samples from the building to ascertain the cause of the blaze. He said that he could not say what had caused the fire.
The LDA has announced Rs1 million compensation for the family of each victim and promised a job to one of their children. “No matter how much compensation is given, it will not heal them,” said Imran Raza.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 20th, 2013.
“Had people been given basic fire safety training, my brother would still be alive,” said Imran Raza, brother of accounts officer Syed Abu Zar Raza, who perished after being trapped on the ninth floor of the LDA Plaza.
Raza was among 25 people 24 of them Lahore Development Authority employees who lost their lives on May 9, when a fire broke out in a record room on the seventh floor of the LDA Plaza on Egerton Road. The blaze spread to a couple of floors above and below and fire fighters took 36 hours to put it out.
The Express Tribune has learnt that after a fire at a shoe factory on Bund Road in September 2012 in which at least 23 people were killed, the LDA moved a request to the Civil Defence Department for fire safety training, but never followed up.
The top three floors and one other floor of the nine-storey LDA Plaza building house LDA offices, while the other five storeys have been leased to 20 tenants. According to witnesses, one of the main reasons for the high death toll was that many workers at the building appeared not to have taken the threat of the fire seriously and remained at their desks for far too long. Another reason, according to Rescue 1122 officials, was that the fire fighters were only called to the scene after LDA people had tried to put out the fire themselves and failed.
Some 50 people ended up trapped inside the building. Some were rescued, some were killed attempting to escape the flames by jumping out the window, and others were killed by smoke or fire.
“Had these people been given training, they would have known the consequences of waiting,” said Imran Raza. He said that he worked at an international company where they were given fire safety training every few months. “Why can’t government employees working in high-rise buildings be given fire safety training?”
The LDA contacted the Civil Defence Department in October 2012. Civil Defence officials said that they contacted the LDA several times after that to arrange a training programme, but the authority did not respond. The Civil Defence office even prepared a schedule for a one-week training programme in January 2013, and delivered the proposal to the LDA administration office, but did not receive a response.
District Officer (Civil Defence) Qari Alam Sher said that they had started a publicity campaign on the importance of fire safety training in September 2012 after the Bund Road factory blaze, putting up banners around the city on the instructions of then DCO Noorul Amin Mengal. They soon received several requests for training, including a request from the LDA in the form of a letter from Deputy Director (Administration) Ali Saeed in October 2012.
They conducted training sessions at several factories, but not for the LDA.
Sher said that the Civil Defence Department could have trained all security staff and four personnel from each LDA department in one week. “When people are made aware of the consequences, they tend to respond urgently to emergency situations. Fire safety training not only includes how to fight fires using extinguishers and hydrants, but also how to evacuate people from the building,” he said.
LDA Director (Administration) Khalid Pervez said that a training session had taken place, but only for four people from the entire LDA staff. He claimed that this was all Civil Defence had proposed for them. Asked about the detailed one-week training programme proposed by the Civil Defence office, he said that he was not aware of it. He said that the question should be directed to the management of the LDA and Other Sponsors (LOS), a management committee in charge of the building’s affairs including fire safety. The LOS is led by a secretary who is an LDA director on deputation. LOS Secretary Akbar Nakai was contacted several times on the phone, but did not respond.
LDA Director (Electrical and Mechanical Engineering) Abdur Razzaq, who has the additional charge of LOS deputy director (EME), said that he was not aware about the Civil Defence Department’s proposal. He said that he did not believe that the fire was caused by a short circuit. “The wiring couldn’t have caused the fire there,” he said.
He added that it was possible that someone had started the fire on purpose “since the LDA has some valuable information”.
A Rescue 1122 official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said that the Punjab Forensic Science Agency had taken over the fire investigation. Their experts had collected samples from the building to ascertain the cause of the blaze. He said that he could not say what had caused the fire.
The LDA has announced Rs1 million compensation for the family of each victim and promised a job to one of their children. “No matter how much compensation is given, it will not heal them,” said Imran Raza.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 20th, 2013.