Narrow shave

Very fortunately, there was no loss of life in the massive fire that broke out for unknown reasons at a textile factory at the Landhi Industrial Estate in Karachi on Friday afternoon. There could so easily have been devastating loss, as there has been in other fires at factories and workshops in the city. According to the owners, the financial damage due to the fire is being estimated to have run into crores of rupees. The fact that it took 18 hours to put out the fire no doubt contributed to this. But at least there were windows for workers to jump out from and prevent the terrible images of charred bodies and destroyed lives that we have witnessed in the past. As before, questions will be asked about why it took so long to put out the fire. Owners report that the two fire-tenders which reached the scene after a long delay were badly equipped and water tanks were empty. This is being denied by the fire department. It is, however, an established fact that the firefighting equipment present in Karachi is insufficient to cater to the needs of such a large metropolis, with much of it in a dilapidated condition. There is also a question over the training of firefighters and the quality of equipment they have at their disposal to deal with the massive infernos we have seen over the past few years.

The structures of factory buildings and the lack of safety equipment placed within them is also a matter brought up again and again. Nothing however appears to happen to remedy this very basic flaw in the system so that there is a greater chance of saving lives. At least, it can be ensured that workers employed in factories are trained to swiftly deal with fires as they break out. They can hardly be expected to do so if there are no extinguishers, no exits and no other precautionary measures. The reasons for the Landhi fire are still under investigation. The city government has once more come under severe criticism. This continues the sparring that is gaining momentum between the local government of the MQM and the provincial PPP government. Poor management of city affairs has come under attack from PPP leaders as well as from the JI. The MQM has in its defence argued that it has been provided too little support and too few resources for governing the city of Karachi. These squabbles do not help dampen the flames that burn Karachi both metaphorically and literally. The priority must be to make its people safer and a war of words will not help ensure this.