260 buildings on city’s three main corridors lack fire safety system: mayor

Only six of the 266 buildings on Karachi’s three main corridors — II Chundrigar Road, Sharea Faisal and Shahrah-e-Quaideen — have fire safety facilities, while all the remaining do not even have fire extinguishers.

Karachi Mayor Barrister Murtaza Wahab said this on Tuesday while reviewing the fire safety audit of the buildings located along the three major thoroughfares of the city. The audit report was presented by the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation’s fire brigade department.

Wahab said that 62 per cent of the buildings lack emergency exits, and 70 per cent of the buildings have substandard electrical wiring, according to the report. He said that only 90 of the 266 buildings have fire alarms and smoke detectors.

All deputy commissioners concerned have been recommended to provide facilities and support to the fire brigade officials. The mayor said that after fire incidents in different buildings, it was decided to conduct a complete fire audit of the buildings near the main highways and on major roads.

He said that this step was taken so that such incidents can be avoided in future, and the city administration fulfils its responsibilities to protect the lives and properties of the residents.

He pointed out that in the initial phase, the fire brigade department conducted a detailed inspection of 266 buildings on II Chundrigar Road, Sharea Faisal and Shahrah-e-Quaideen, and completed the process of fire safety audit, and now in the light of the report, all necessary steps would be taken.

Wahab said that there are large and important commercial and business centres around these three main thoroughfares of the city where there is a concern due to a lack of satisfactory arrangements for fire prevention.

“One should realise the responsibilities, and instead of waiting for an accident to happen, complete preventive measures in this regard,” he said, adding that as responsible and dutiful citizens, “it is also our duty to play our part in protecting the lives and properties of others”.

He said that in the report of the fire safety audit, it has also been recommended to ban the entry of all unnecessary NGOs to the spots where fire incidents had happened, while the Sindh Building Control Authority and the people living in the buildings have been instructed to take necessary measures to avoid such incidents.

During the fire safety audit, said the mayor, basic fire safety devices, electrical wiring, switches, plugs, smoke detectors, fire watch guards, fire extinguishers, fire hoses and emergency exits were checked in the buildings located in the above-mentioned corridors.

He highlighted that according to the law, all big buildings must have a fire safety system and emergency exit routes, and in all such buildings where there are no fire safety arrangements, the administration should take necessary actions.

“It is simply a matter of human lives. The management and owners of the buildings should cooperate with them [the city administration] in this regard,” he concluded.